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Published January 20, 2025 4:39pm Updated January 20, 2025 4:39pm
West Ham have submitted an astonishing £57million bid in order to sign Jhon Duran – a top transfer target for Arsenal and Chelsea.
Duran is enjoying a great season at Aston Villa, with 12 goals in 27 games across all competitions.
More impressively, the 21-year-old has achieved this despite being second-choice striker behind Ollie Watkins, with just seven of those appearances coming from the start.
It works out as a goal every 82 minutes, and that form has attracted much interest from around the Premier League.
Chelsea have long been linked with the Colombian, who moved to Villa Park from Chicago Fire in January 2023, and came close to signing him for £42million last summer.
West Ham also had a bid rejected last summer, while reports claim Arsenal approached Villa in October shortly after the striker signed a new five-and-a-half year contract.
Arsenal are looking for a new goalscorer to revive their season, while Chelsea may be in the market for a centre-forward if Christopher Nkunku leaves for Bayern Munich.
But in order to get ahead of their local rivals, The Athletic report that West Ham are desperate to lure Duran to the London stadium and have made another official offer.
The £57m bid is nearly double what they offered last season but still falls short of Villa’s £75m valuation and is expected to be rejected.
The Irons are enduring a difficult season, languishing in 14th in the Premier League, with Graham Potter recently replacing Julen Lopetegui in the dugout.
Goals have been hard to come by and with the exception of the struggling Danny Ings, the team don’t have any centre-forwards available.
Summer signing Niklas Fullkrug is out with a hamstring injury, while captain Jarrod Bowen is sidelined thanks to a fractured foot.
Veteran Michail Antonio was involved in a horrific car crash in December and while he has been discharged from hospital, the 34-year-old is not expected back on the pitch until next season.
It looks to be a busy January transfer window for West Ham who have also been linked with Manchester United wantaway Marcus Rashford and Chelsea’s Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall.
Ironically, the Hammers’ next game will be on Sunday when they travel to Duran’s Aston Villa.
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