West Ham United have made an approach to sign Sevilla striker Youssef En-Nesyri on loan this month.
First reported by The Athletic, football.london understands that West Ham have enquired about recruiting the Moroccan international forward, initially on loan, following the Hammers’ struggles for goals this season.
En-Nesyri was a key player for Morocco, alongside Hammers centre-back Nayef Aguerd, in their run to finishing fourth at the 2022 World Cup last month. The 25-year-old striker started all seven games as his country became the first-ever African nation to reach the last four, scoring two goals during wins over Canada in the group stage and Portugal in the quarter-finals.
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However, a move for the Sevilla forward could prove to be unlikely to happen due to the Spanish side's poor form in La Liga this season. Sevilla moved out of the relegation zone following a 2-1 win over Getafe on Sunday but only sit out of the bottom three on goal difference.
Sevilla are a side more commonly associated with the top end of Spain’s top-flight than the bottom end, having qualified for European football in 18 of their last 19 seasons. They competed in this season’s Champions League but dropped down to the Europa League’s play-off knockout rounds after finishing third in a group that included Manchester City, Borussia Dortmund, and Copenhagen.
En-Nesyri has scored five times in 18 appearances for Sevilla this season, but all of those goals have come outside of La Liga, with three in two Copa Del Rey matches and two in four games in the Champions League during home games against Dortmund and Copenhagen.
En-Nesyri started in the win over Getafe in what was only his fourth league start of the season, having played in 12 out of 16 matches in La Liga this term.
Goals have been an issue for West Ham all season domestically. Strikers Gianluca Scamacca and Michail Antonio have scored 12 goals between them, but only five have been in the Premier League.
West Ham have only scored 15 league goals so far from their 18 league matches. Only Nottingham Forest, Everton, and Wolverhampton Wanderers have scored fewer.
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