West Ham United are tracking Real Salt Lake winger Jefferson Savarino, it has been claimed.
The Hammers and their Premier League rivals Newcastle United are monitoring Savarino from close quarters according to a report by MLS Soccer. He is currently with the Venezuelan national side at the Copa America.
Under the tutelage of Manuel Pellegrini, West Ham United finished tenth in the English top tier last season. However, they need to bolster their squad this summer to challenge for a place in the Europa League.
Sky Sports have reported that Savarino could be available for £6million. He is one of the highly rated young gems in the Major League Soccer and no wonder the Irons have him on their radar.
Will he be a good acquisition by Pellegrini?
Savarino emerged through the youth ranks of Venezuelan outfit Zulia and steadily paved his way to their senior side. In the summer of 2017, he joined Real Salt Lake on loan and eventually signed for them permanently.
He plies his trade on the right wing and his lightning pace makes him a fearsome wide player. Besides, he is versatile enough to operate on the left wing as well as in the central attacking midfield.
Despite being a relatively young player, he has already represented the Venezuelan national side on ten occasions and is touted to have a bright future ahead of him owing to his quality.
The 22-year-old has a direct approach and backs himself to stretch the defensive line of the opposition.
He has already mustered 3 goals and 1 assist in 13 MLS starts this season for his current side. Savarino loves to cut inside from the wings and trouble the opposition backline instead of sticking to the byline.
However, West Ham United already have Andriy Yarmolenko, Grady Diangana and Michail Antonio for the right-wing position along with new signing Pablo Fornals and it is difficult to imagine Savarino making it to the starting line up anytime soon.
Nonetheless, he could be a handy backup for Felipe Anderson on the left wing. His flexible attacking approach towards the game should fit well into Pellegrini’s tactics if his move to the London Stadium materialises.
He obviously lacks experience in the Premier League but is undoubtedly a promising prospect. Considering that West Ham United have some other areas to address, it will be interesting to see whether they make signing him a priority or not.