West Ham have been named as the club providing “stiff competition” to Manchester United for a 147-goal striker.
The search for a new forward at West Ham and Manchester United has set the two clubs on a collision course.
The Hammers and Red Devils have both been linked with a number of alleged mutual forward targets.
From Serhou Guirassy to Youssef En-Nesyri and Samu Omorodion.
So it seems INEOS and West Ham technical director Tim Steidten are eyeing a similar profile of player.
Especially when you throw in the fact Manchester United – who finished one place above the Hammers last season – are also interested in Max Kilman.
Indeed Man United were even linked with West Ham’s new head coach when Erik ten Hag’s future was on the line not too long ago.
West Ham and Man United circling same targets
Now it seems the two clubs are competing for yet another player.
Because West Ham have been named as the “stiff competition” to Manchester United for a 147-goal striker.
West Ham have been heavily linked with Lille forward Jonathan David since Steidten’s arrival last summer.
A couple of months ago journalist Graeme Bailey revealed David, who has scored 147 goals for club and country in his career so far, remains high on West Ham’s radar this summer.
Steidten is known to keep close tabs on Ligue 1 for potential targets.
And given that Man United’s new co-owners INEOS own Nice, their knowledge of the top players in France is obvious.
Now it is being reported that Man United have made contact with Lille about signing David.
West Ham “stiff competition” to Manchester United for David
But i News and Get French Football News claim West Ham are seriously rivalling the Red Devils for the 24-year-old.
Hammers News reported last week that Lille’s president Oliver Letang took the unusual decision to publicly declare David can leave this summer due to his contract situation.
It is thought David can be signed for reasonable fees this summer given he is going into the final year of his contract.
Hence the interest from West Ham and Man United, who are both having to stretch a limited budget across sizeable rebuilds.
It is claimed Lille will sell David for as little as £25m – which perfectly fits West Ham’s budget.
The reports warn Man United are facing stiff competition from West Ham for the former Genk striker.
Tottenham and Aston Villa are also said to be interested but David is not a priority target for those sides.
The bad news for West Ham is that Manchester United have already made contact with David’s representatives according to the reports.
What does David bring?
For starters David brings huge versatility. He has had more success as a second striker in a 4–4–2 formation or even as an attacking midfielder.
But make no mistake – as his goal tally suggests – David is also capable of playing as an out–and–out striker.
His finishing is top drawer. You don’t score 147 goals for club and country by the age of 24 if it isn’t.
The fact he is better as a second striker might suggest Man United would be a better move for him, though, given they have invested £70m in Rasmus Hojlund as their main forward.
Capable of playing between the lines and findings gaps in the defence, David has been likened to Antoine Griezmann.
He has quick acceleration is is known for being rapid over a distance too.
Thanks to his pace and speed, David gives teams an effective weapon on the counter-attack. And intelligent player, David is also known for being key to a team’s pressing from the front.
You can check him out in action in the video below.
