West Ham’s relegation has created an unusual transfer angle around Žan Vipotnik. The Hammers are now reportedly considering a move for the Swansea City striker.
The Slovenian forward has just completed one of the strongest attacking campaigns in English football outside the Premier League.
Vipotnik scored 23 goals in 44 Championship matches and finished the season as one of the league’s standout forwards, not simply one of Swansea’s best performers.
His overall contribution reached 26 goal involvements, averaging 0.79 per 90 minutes.
The efficiency is equally impressive. Basically he took 88 shots across the campaign, with 38 on target, giving him a shooting accuracy of 43.18%. That means he scored once every 3.83 attempts… And he averaged 2.68 attempts per game.
Those numbers have already attracted attention from all around the continent. We have already covered interest from Toulouse, Benfica and even Brighton. However, fresh claims from Italy now point toward strong interest from West Ham.
West Ham looking for attacking rebuild
Journalist Marco Mampreso reports that West Ham are closely following Žan Vipotnik as they search for attacking reinforcements ahead of the summer window.
The report describes the Swansea forward as one of the offensive profiles being monitored “with greatest interest” by the Hammers for the next transfer window.
That pursuit makes sense within the club’s current reality. Relegation changes the landscape. However, West Ham still possess financial strength, infrastructure and visibility that most Championship clubs cannot match.
Even outside the Premier League, the London side are widely expected to compete immediately for promotion. Their budget and wage structure are likely to remain significantly stronger than most teams in the division. This includes Swansea.
Why the move could appeal to Vipotnik
For Žan Vipotnik, the attraction could be about stepping into a project with greater immediate expectations and exposure.
West Ham still carry the profile of a recently established Premier League club. They undoubtedly have more fans, stronger commercial pull and a squad likely to be rebuilt around a quick return to the top flight.
That should matter in a summer where Swansea are already trying to resist growing interest. Earlier reports from Slovenia claimed the Welsh side are demanding around €30m (£25.8m) for the striker. They will only consider what has been described as a “crazy” offer.
The challenge for Swansea is now laid out. Keeping Vipotnik would strengthen their own promotion hopes enormously. Yet if clubs with bigger financial power inside the same division start pushing aggressively, the situation becomes more complicated.
What happens next
Žan Vipotnik’s future is no longer limited to speculative links from abroad. Clubs with real spending power and immediate promotion ambitions are now entering the picture.
West Ham will need goals to create momentum after relegation, so they need players capable of making the difference quickly at Championship level.
And Vipotnik’s profile fits all of those requirements.