West Ham are in the bottom three in the Premier League along with Wolves and Burnley. They are four points from safety behind Nottingham Forest in 17th after 19 fixtures. They drew 2-2 at home to Brighton and Hove Albion last time out after goals by Jarrod Bowen and Lucas Paqueta.
The Hammers turned to Nuno Espirito Santo as their head coach earlier this season. He was picked as their replacement for Graham Potter, who was sacked after a poor run of form. The east London outfit are looking to bring in some new faces in the January transfer window to bolster their squad.
West Ham target Fulham winger Adama Traore
According to The Telegraph, West Ham want to sign Fulham winger Adama Traore this month. They are keen to strike a winter agreement with the attacker. He is out of contract at the end of the campaign and is due to become a free agent in June as things stand.
Traore, 29, could be seen by the Hammers as someone to boost their attacking department. If he joined, he would provide more competition and depth at the top end of the pitch. In addition, he is rapid and his speed would be a useful weapon for Nuno’s side.
The ex-Spain international, who made eight caps before his last one in 2021, is an experienced player and would be worth a gamble by West Ham. He knows the league inside out and has proved in the past that his pace can cause problems to opposition defenders. The forward has made 75 appearances for Fulham since his move to Craven Cottage in 2023 and he has scored four goals.
Nuno knows him already from their time at Wolves together. He has managed to get the best out of him in the past and he is an individual who he knows well and trusts. As well as his time at Molineux, he has also had spells in the past at Barcelona, Aston Villa and Middlesbrough.
West Ham should propose swap deal to Fulham
James Ward-Prowse has struggled for game time at West Ham recently and needs to leave for a change of scene. With that in mind, they should offer him to Fulham as part of a swap deal for Traore. It would suit both parties involved and ensure that neither are left short changed.
The 31-year-old isn’t getting minutes with the Hammers and must consider a departure soon for the sake of his career. He moved to the London Stadium in 2023 for around £30 million but his switch to the capital hasn’t gone to plan. The Portsmouth-born man was loaned out to Nottingham Forest last term.
Ward-Prowse returned to West Ham for pre-season but hasn’t been able to make the impact he would have wanted to. Prior to his transfer there, he was a key player at Southampton. He rose up through their ranks and went on to play 410 games altogether, finding the net on 55 occasions.
If he joined Fulham, he would give Marco Silva another option to pick from in midfield. He is dangerous from set-pieces and may feel he has a point to prove at the top level. He would battle it out with the likes of Sasa Lukic, Sander Berge, Tom Cairney and Harrison Reed for a place in their starting XI and he wouldn’t be a bad addition at all.
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