West Ham are believed to be competing with Arsenal and Liverpool for the signature of Eintracht Frankfurt forward Hugo Ekitike.

French newspaper L’Equipe named the three Premier League clubs as potential destinations for the player in an article earlier this week.

Frankfurt are said to be holding out for a fee in a region of €80m (£67m) but German journalist Christopher Michel says the Hammers would be getting a unique talent:

“Heki is an exceptional player at 22 years old. Yes, he lacks directness. But such a complete striker is very rare in Europe!”

Ekitike has been in great form

There is no doubt that the France Under 21 international is an attractive target. He has found the back of the net 18 times in all competitions this season.

With it being reported that West Ham are unlikely to sign Evan Ferguson on a permanent basis at the end of the campaign, the club will be in the market for a new No.9.

However, Ekitike’s asking price is very steep and the competition for his signature means that a lot of things would have to go in the Irons’ favour for a move to the London Stadium to materialise.

Can West Ham afford the player?

A West Ham insider has recently spoken out to say the club is “broke”, meaning that they are in no position to spend money on new signings without selling players first.

If that is an accurate assessment of the situation, then a bid for Ekitike seems highly improbable this summer. A more realistic target is thought to be Lille’s Jonathan David.

The Canadian international has actually scored three more goals than Ekitike and he will become a free agent when his contract expires at the end of June.

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