West Ham United are poised to make a move for Paris Saint-Germain midfielder Carlos Soler, according to French outlet L’Équipe.
The Spanish international has struggled for regular playing time since joining the Ligue 1 giants two years ago and is surplus to requirements at the Parc des Princes.
With PSG bolstering their midfield options this summer, Soler’s opportunities look set to be further limited.
The French champions are keen to offload the 27-year-old before the transfer window closes and have set a €20 million asking price.
La Liga duo Real Sociedad and Valencia have shown interest in Soler, but financial constraints have hindered their pursuit.
This has opened the door for Premier League clubs, with Brighton & Hove Albion and West Ham emerging as potential suitors.
The Hammers have recently stepped up their efforts to secure Soler’s signature and are now in talks with PSG. West Ham are hopeful of reaching an agreement before the transfer deadline.
The Irons have already signed Guido Rodriguez to bolster the midfield but could add the PSG man to give manager Julen Lopetegui more options.
Soler’s arrival could spell doom for set-piece specialist James Ward-Prowse, who doesn’t seem like a natural fit for Lopetegui’s football. He could also replace Tomas Soucek in the starting line-up.
Like Soucek, Soler has a knack for scoring big goals and showed that during his time at Valencia.
Signing Soler makes no sense
Shelling out €20m to sign Soler is an unwise move that could undo all the excellent work Tim Steidten has done this summer.
The Spaniard is a serviceable midfielder but struggles to influence the game in the centre when he is not scoring.
At Los Che, fans looked to him to provide control in the centre, but the game regularly bypassed him.
While it is easy to get carried away by the scored 22 goals in his final two seasons at the club, several of those strikes came from the penalty spot.
Steidten will be better off pursuing another midfield target who can take charge of proceedings while delivering the required output.