West Ham in battle with Liverpool to sign De Ketelaere

western ham United are reportedly in a battle with Liverpool on a deal to sign Atalanta star Charles De Ketelaere, according to Caught offside.

La Dea have been in excellent form under Gian Piero Gasperini of late. They won the european league title last term and we have been mounting a charge for the title this campaign. Furthermore, they are in a promising position in the champions league to reach the knockout phase.

For this reason, the big clubs in Europe have been keeping an eye on some of the Italian team's key players. Juventus signed Teun Koopmeiners last summer, but the player was linked with many other clubs.

Ederson has been mentioned as a potential target for some first division clubs and now, De Ketelaere has also started to be linked with a move away from the Gewiss Stadium.

Caught offside They claim West Ham are planning to make a move for the Belgian in the upcoming January window after being impressed by his recent performances.

Battle

The Hammers view De Ketelaere as a possible replacement for Mohammed Kudus, who has been linked with a move away from the London Stadium in recent times. Atalanta want around £40m to sell the 23-year-old, who still has two and a half years left on his current contract.

But the report says that acquiring De Ketelaere will not be easy for West Ham, as Liverpool are also interested in him and are already preparing to make a bid to lure him to Anfield.

Besides, Villa Aston, Tottenham, Newcastle UnitedEdit, city ​​of manchester and Arsenal They are also interested in signing the versatile player. Therefore, the Belgian international has no shortage of potential suitors at the moment.

De Ketelaere is an attacking midfielder by characteristics, but he is also comfortable on the right flank and can provide cover in the centre-forward position if necessary.

Kudus has been one of the east London club's key players of late, so if he does eventually leave the club next summer a new striker will be needed.

On the other hand, Mohamed SalahThe future remains uncertain at Anfield with his current contract set to expire at the end of this season. So if he were to leave, signing a new top-class striker would become a necessity for the Reds.

But De Ketelaere is a different type of player to Salah, so the Belgian would not be an ideal replacement for the Egyptian international.