West Ham eyeing ‘incredible’ £25m attacker who wants to change clubs now

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West Ham United have been linked with Al-Ittihad winger Jota in recent days.

Earlier this week, GiveMeSport claimed that the Hammers have been keeping a close eye on the Portuguese talent.

Now, Sky Sports journalist Dharmesh Sheth has provided an update on the state of play involving West Ham and their interest in Jota.

Sheth, speaking to GiveMeSport, says the 24-year-old is eager to leave Al-Ittihad after a difficult first half of the season, adding that the Hammers are indeed keeping tabs on the player.

However, the Sky reporter says Jota’s current salary – a reported £200,000-a-week – is more than West Ham would want to pay, and he would have to take a pay cut.

“They are keeping an eye on Jota,” said Sheth. “His situation is extraordinary.

“He only joined Al-Ittihad in the summer of 2023 for £25m on a £200,000 per-week contract. But when the Saudi Pro League window closed, he was eliminated from the squad, and he’s not featured.

“So, he wants to go, and I think Al-Ittihad would be happy for him to leave as well, provided the deal is right.

“So, West Ham are just keeping an eye on that situation. They wouldn’t want to be paying those kinds of wages, though, so it would require Jota to be able to take a cut in those wages.”

West Ham eyeing Al-Ittihad winger Jota

Jota has struggled in Saudi Arabia since his £25million move, as he has been unable to get much game time due to a rule surrounding how many foreign players can play at one time.

To date, the Portuguese has made just 11 appearances for his club since joining in summer, clocking up just over 500 minutes and two goals.

Meanwhile, West Ham are in real need of bolstering their attacking ranks amid a spate of injuries to their front line.

The Hammers didn’t replace Gianluca Scamacca in summer, and Jarrod Bowen and Michail Antonio have been filling the role this term.

However, both players – plus Lucas Paqueta – are sidelined through injury. Meanwhile, Mohammed Kudus is at the Africa Cup of Nations with Ghana.

Jota would be a good shout for West Ham. He is a high-calibre player who dazzled at Celtic and has also been linked with Tottenham.

Ange Postecoglou previously deemed Jota “incredible”, while Scottish football pundit Barry Ferguson described him as a “difference-maker“.

Let’s see what happens in the coming weeks. Following Jordan Henderson’s departure from Al-Ettifaq, West Ham may well fancy their chances of signing a player who’s not as important to Al-Ittihad as Henderson was to his former club.