Transfer Rumour: West Ham will demand Anthony Martial should Manchester United sign Dimitri Payet
West Ham United are reportedly interested in signing Anthony Martial should Manchester United approach the London club to sign Dimitri Payet in January. Jose Mourinho is looking to reinforce his attacking department and sees the 29-year-old as the kind of signing capable of helping him achieve his plans.
But the London club are adamant that money alone will not prove to be sufficient for them if they're to lose arguably their biggest star. Anthony Martial hasn't featured regularly for Manchester United under the Portuguese manager but West Ham believe he has the capabilities – and the resale value given his age – to be the kind of signing they could use.
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21-year-old Martial has made sixteen appearances for the Red Devils this season with half of those coming from the bench. He's said to be frustrated under Mourinho and is pushing for a move away from Old Trafford. West Ham could be the kind of club where he can rediscover his form again – and given they want him on loan for the remainder of the season with the option to buy, he has a say on his future, too.
Dimitri Payet, on the other hand, could prove to be the kind of signing Manchester United need to push them to challenge for the Premier League title. The 29-year-old has once again been superb for the Hammers, scoring three goals and assisting a further seven in seventeen appearances for the club in all competitions.
Most of the creative attacking play West Ham build from go through him and he rarely makes an error in judgement to ensure his side end up on the winning side of that attack. At Manchester United, he's likely to start on the left-hand side.
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Mourinho is desperate to bring in players ever though he spent nearly £180 million in the summer on the likes of Paul Pogba, Eric Bailly, Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Zlatan Ibrahimovic – although the latter was a free signing. Another central midfielder, another centre-back and a forward are all priorities for the former Real Madrid and Chelsea manager.
Atletico Madrid's Antoine Griezmann, Arsenal's Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Bayern Munich's Douglas Costa are all reported targets for the Portuguese manager while he's looking at the likes of Marco Verratti and Thiago Alcantara as options to further boost his midfield come the January transfer window.