West Ham will step up their hunt for midfield reinforcements after reaching an agreement to loan Edson Álvarez to Fenerbahce. The departure of the Mexico international gives the club extra funds to bring in new players.
West Ham want Álvarez’s wages of £115,000 a week off the books and have been waiting for him to agree to a season-long loan to Fenerbahce, who have included an option to buy in the deal. Álvarez has fallen from favour under Graham Potter, who is looking to add energy and creativity to his midfield. West Ham want two midfielders – one to sit deep and control play, another to operate in an advanced role – and have identified a number of targets.
West Ham, who opened their campaign with a 3-0 loss to Sunderland, lodged unsuccessful bids for Southampton’s Mateus Fernandes, Barcelona’s Marc Casadó and Chelsea’s Andrey Santos this week. Their improved offer of £30m plus £2m add-ons for Fernandes fell well below Southampton’s valuation of the 21-year-old. Southampton are likely to strengthen their financial position and boost their chances of keeping the Portuguese midfielder by selling the England under-21 winger Tyler Dibling to Everton.
Potter views Fernandes as his ideal No 8, but West Ham are not willing to meet Southampton’s asking price of £50m and will consider other options. The club are tracking Werder Bremen’s Romano Schmid and are interested in the Lens midfielder Andy Diouf.
West Ham are scouting extensively in France and like the 21-year-old Rennes midfielder Djaoui Cissé, who is reportedly a target for Inter. They are also looking at the Eredivisie and have added Ajax’s Kenneth Taylor to a list that already contains Feyernoord’s Quinten Timber. Another player of interest is Torino’s Ivan Ilic.
A possible affordable option to play further forward is Getafe’s Christantus Uche. The 22-year-old Nigerian can play as an attacking midfielder and up front. Uche scored and made a goal in Getafe’s win over Celta Vigo last Sunday.
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West Ham remain open to offers for Guido Rodríguez and Andy Irving. They have signed four players this summer and have not been working with a big budget. Concerns over meeting the Premier League’s profitability and sustainability regulations forced them to wait for Mohammed Kudus to join Tottenham for £55m before making signings.
Meanwhile, Bournemouth are exploring a move for the Chelsea defender Axel Disasi, who spent the second half of last season on loan at Aston Villa. Disasi, a £38.7m arrival from Monaco on a six-year contract in 2023, had an indifferent spell at Villa, making 10 appearances in all competitions.
Bournemouth want to strengthen at centre-back after the sales of Illia Zabarnyi and Dean Huijsen. They have added Bafodé Diakité from Lille but are searching for further defensive reinforcements. They previously expressed interest in the Chelsea teenager Josh Acheampong, who started against Crystal Palace last Sunday. Disasi was left out of Chelsea’s Club World Cup squad and did not feature against Palace.
Bournemouth have done business with Chelsea this summer, with the Serbia goalkeeper Djordje Petrovic joining in a £25m deal. They have also signed Amine Adli, Ben Doak and Adrien Truffert this window. Luis Sinisterra, signed last year from Leeds, is poised to join Cruzeiro on loan.
Leeds have signed Switzerland forward Noah Okafor from Milan for a reported fee which could rise to £18m. Okafor, who spent the later part of last season on loan at Napoli, is Leeds’s ninth summer signing after promotion to the Premier League.
The club said: “Leeds United are delighted to announce the signing of Noah Okafor on a four-year contract, subject to a work permit and international clearance. The 25-year-old arrives at Elland Road on a permanent deal from Italian giants AC Milan and can operate across the forward areas on either wing, or as a central striker when required to do so.”
Okafor, who began his professional career at Basel, scored 34 goals and made 23 assists in 110 appearances for Salzburg before joining Milan in a £13.4m deal in July 2023. He scored seven goals and made five assists in two seasons at the Serie A club, which included his four-month loan spell at Napoli.
Nottingham Forest have announced the signing of Douglas Luiz on loan from Juventus. The 27-year-old Brazilian midfielder, who played for Aston Villa for five seasons from 2019, joins on a season-long loan with a conditional obligation to buy next summer.
Forest’s chief football officer, Ross Wilson, told the club’s website: “It’s been a very busy but successful period for us in the window in the past few weeks, and Douglas is another addition to the squad that will bring significant quality to the group. He’s played at the highest level for a long time, understands the demands of the Premier League, and has experience playing in elite European competition.”
PA Media contributed to this report
