If a report from Tuttosport is believed to be true, West Ham United are keen on securing the services of Spezia centre-half Jakub Kiwior as soon as the transfer window reopens in January. The chase has escalated recently, particularly after Kurt Zouma’s knee surgery that would keep him sidelined for months.
The Hammers made it to Europe for the second consecutive campaign but are currently struggling at the wrong end of the Premier League standings. David Moyes must aim for momentum post-World Cup break but, at the same time, deal with form and fitness woes that refrained them from grinding out results.
Why West Ham United Must Rope In The Polish Ace
West Ham United had a busy summer when they bolstered the backline by roping in two Ligue 1 centre-backs. Nayef Aguerd joined from Rennes for a fee of around £30m, whereas Paris St-Germain accepted a £10.1m bid for Thilo Kehrer.
The latter has featured regularly in the defensive third, however, Aguerd is yet to settle in as he was recovering from an ankle injury that ruled him out till mid-October.
Kiwior spent his youth stints at GKS Tychy and Anderlecht before leaving for the Slovak side Železiarne Podbrezová. He was then roped in by fellow Fortuna Liga outfit Žilina and his emergence in Slovakia grabbed the attention of Spezia. The Polish prodigy completed his transfer to Serie A last year on the summer deadline day and has so far featured 40 times across competitions. He is Poland’s most sought-after player and his performance so far in Qatar has already drawn the attention of an array of clubs.
While the Hammers are weighing up a winter swoop, Napoli, AC Milan and Juventus are also keeping close eyes on the 22-year-old. The East Londoners scouted him time and again over the past few months and a fee of around £13m is claimed to be enough to secure his services after a bid of around £10m got rejected during the previous window.
Having said that, a stellar World Cup display could see the Little Eagles demanding a sizeable amount. Kiwior is contracted until the summer of 2025 and the Stratford side might find it difficult to lure him in amid interest from the Italian hotshots.
West Ham also have Angelo Ogbonna and Craig Dawson as the central defensive options. But the veteran pair are in their thirties with little to offer in the long run. It remains to be seen now whether the Irons win the race for the young defender.
