According to a recent report by Italian publication TuttoMercatoWeb, Premier League outfit West Ham United are said to have placed keen eyes on Inter Milan youth shot-stopper Filip Stankovic, son of former club legend and Red Star Belgrade manager Dejan Stankovic.
The report suggests that the Hammers are eager to make their move when the transfer window reopens in the summer but certainly won’t have an easy task of luring him away from his father’s former club.
The report claims that the youngster has hailed the opportunity to train and play with Inter Milan as a dream, meaning that the likelihood of a departure does seem low. Despite this, the Hammers’ current goalkeeping situation could tempt the London club into making a fairly desperate move for the youngster. Although the league season has currently been put on hold owing to the COVID-19 pandemic, the upcoming transfer window could be an interesting one.
Who Is Filip Stankovic?
Son of former Inter Milan and Serbia legend Dejan Stankovic, the 18-year-old was born in Rome and has been a member of the Milan academy since joining as a child. Although the youngster has only recently risen to the limelight, the progress that he’s made through the ranks at Inter will be a motivating sign for any of the suitors. The Serbian boasts great numbers in the youth leagues as well, meaning that shot-stopping is one of his best attributes.
The Inter Milan youngster has featured in 18 appearances across a variety of youth competitions and has only conceded 20 goals in the process while keeping eight clean sheets along the way as well. Filip has even featured for Serbia at both U17 and U19 level, meaning that his eventual promotion to the national team could be an inevitability. Last season, while he was still a player for the Inter Milan U17s, the Serbian went on to pick up an impressive record of 18 goals conceded from 19 fixtures.
Why West Ham United Should Should Move For Filip Stankovic?
The Hammers have two experienced Premier League goalkeepers in their ranks at this point, but the fact that they’re both on the wrong side of their thirties will surely be a concern for David Moyes. Despite not having the greatest starts to life in London, the manager seemed to have brought a little bit of spirit and energy back into the side with his training methods as well as team selection. Lukasz Fabianski has been the first-choice keeper at the London Stadium for a while now, and in his absence, the Hammers’ struggles were rather apparent to see.
For all the money that they’ve spent over the last two years, it’s safe to say that West Ham haven’t gotten anywhere near the levels that were expected. Despite this, the fact that they have top quality players all around could tempt Moyes into making a move for Stankovic. The youngster, at just 18, still has a massive future ahead of him. If his displays at the youth level are anything to go by, he’ll eventually undoubtedly be an upgrade on both 32-year-old Darren Randolph and 34-year-old Lukasz Fabianski.
