West Ham United are interested in the services of Inter Milan midfielder Antonio Candreva, it has been claimed by Calcio Mercato.
The Hammers have struggled with injuries to many of their key attackers this season and as a result, manager Manuel Pellegrini might be forced into adding more players.
Candreva: The player West Ham need to challenge for Europe?
Candreva was regarded as one of Italy’s best wingers not so long ago. This season, the 31-year old has struggled to make himself a regular in Inter’s starting line-up, having played under 300 minutes of league football.
The former Lazio star is still seen as an influential winger and can provide the creative essence in the final third, a feature West Ham have missed at times this season following the injuries to Andriy Yarmolenko and Manuel Lanzini.
Candreva is a good crosser of the ball and that would help the Hammers considering the forwards they have.
But the Italian’s overall gameplay is not only restricted on the flanks, as the 31-year-old is an excellent dribbler, who averaged over 2 dribbles per game last season with a good success rate of 66%.
Furthermore, Candreva is a versatile attacker as he can operate on both flanks as well as the attacking midfield position, which could be useful, especially with the Hammers struggling with injuries to their main creative players.
Candreva is likely to adapt to West Ham’s attacking gameplay as they play on the counter and might operate as an inverted winger who can move into central areas of the pitch and create chances or even operate as the attacking midfielder – making him a viable transfer target for West Ham United.
The Hammers have already strengthened their attacking unit, having brought in Samir Nasri on a free transfer, and the addition of someone as experienced as Candreva would beef up their attacking department as they look to push for a Europa League place in the second half of the campaign.
West Ham have done reasonably well under Pellegrini and the addition of someone like Candreva, who has the experience of playing for a top side, might additionally help them challenge for a place in Europe come the end of the season.
Stat courtesy: Whoscored
