West Ham United have launched a bid to sign highly-rated Corinthians winger Wesley Gassova, according to French news outlet Foot Mercato.
The 19-year-old is considered one of the finest talents in South America and is attracting plenty of interest from clubs across Europe.
Wesley has been strongly linked with a move to Ligue 1, but he could be the next Brazilian prodigy to move to the Premier League.
West Ham have already signed Luis Guilherme from Palmeiras, but it appears our appetite for South American talent has only grown stronger.
Reports suggest we’ve tabled a formal offer for Wesley. However, we’ll face strong competition from Chelsea, which is unsurprising, given the Blues have a penchant for snapping up South American talents.
West Ham need a natural left-winger
Wesley has been a consistent performer for Corinthians, notching five goals and three assists in 34 games across all competitions.
He has scored twice and created three big chances in 13 Brazilian Serie A games. He has an exceptional work rate, winning 50% of his ground duels while averaging four ball recoveries per 90 minutes in the league.
Wesley is a versatile forward who can play anywhere across the frontline. However, he is a natural left winger, a position where we could use more reinforcement after Said Benhrama’s permanent exit.
The player and his entourage are considering joining Ligue 1 as a stepping stone before moving to the Premier League, but we’re pushing to sign him this summer.
While Wesley is a promising target to strengthen our attacking options, we should be targeting a more established forward to bolster our chances of returning to Europe next season.
Nevertheless, Wesley would be a decent addition to Julen Lopetegui’s squad. He is an excellent dribbler, attempting over ten dribbles per match while boasting a 60% success rate.
Wesley still has plenty of room for improvement, but drawing comparisons to French superstar Kylian Mbappe suggests he has all the tools to become a world-beater in the future.
Stats from Sofascore.com & DataScout