West Ham could land ex-Chelsea star for just £25m amid Aston Villa and Leicester interest

West Ham are in for a busy summer transfer window with new head coach Julen Lopetegui ready to splash the cash. The Irons finished a disappointing ninth place in the 2023/24 season and while they seek to once again secure a spot in Europe ahead of the 2025/26 campaign, Spanish boss Lopetegui is eyeing up who can help them get there.

One name linked with a move to the London Stadium, according to Hammer News, is the former Chelsea star Tammy Abraham who has been with AS Roma since departing Stamford Bridge in 2021.

A new centre-forward has been deemed an ‘absolute necessity’ for the Hammers in the upcoming window with Abraham the preferred candidate. Jamaica international Michail Antonio has been an excellent stalwart for the Irons over the past nine years, scoring 67 goals in 254 Premier League matches but at 34 years-old, he is not the player he was when he arrived in Stratford in 2015.

While the 26-year-old England international Abraham has now been pin-pointed as the striker set to help create the necessary progress over the next few years, signing the AS Roma ace may not be easy.

Roma are looking to cash in on the ex-Blues star but according to Vocegiallorossa.it, the Irons are currently in a three-way transfer battle with Leicester and Abraham’s former loan side Aston Villa for the striker’s signature.

The newly promoted Foxes will be looking to bolster their squad in the hope of avoiding an immediate drop back down to the Championship while Unai Emery’s squad will need to be strengthened ahead of competing in Europe’s top competition, the UEFA Champions League, for the first time. Abraham also previously starred for the Villans on a loan spell away from Chelsea, which could hand the club a further advantage in their pursuit.

Whoever does sign the striker, however, may only have to pay £25 million despite previous claims the Serie A side valued him at the £40m mark. He was initially signed for £34m by AS Roma back in 2021 and still has two years left on his current contract. During his first season, he scored 17 goals for the Serie A side and became the first English player in over thirty years to score more than ten Serie A goals in a season.

However, on the final day of the 2023 season, he ruptured his ACL and has since been out of action over 300 days. It remains up for debate whether the Irons, Villans or Foxes will be ready to risk paying £25m for a player who has not played competitive football in nearly a year but if they do, they will be signing on a star who has 130 goals in 339 career appearances for club and country.