Not content with beating their rivals 4-1, Spurs have now crushed a new West Ham striker dream to dust before it even had a chance.
West Ham and Tottenham Hotspur found themselves at a striker crossroads in the summer.
Both the Hammers and Spurs needed a top quality new forward.
The London rivals were linked with mutual interest in a number of targets.
Not to mention the man Tottenham ended up signing, Dominic Solanke.
The reported £63m fee Tottenham spent on Solanke made headlines and raised eyebrows.
It also dwarfed the £23.5m West Ham paid Dortmund for 31-year-old Niclas Fullkrug.
Heading into the window with a striker signing among their top priorities, Solanke was one of West Ham’s top targets.
West Ham had held talks with Solanke’s family over a summer move to the London Stadium.
The Hammers hierarchy were keen to show the forward how serious they were about building their new-look team around him after being impressed by the blossoming of his all-round game at Bournemouth.
Spurs hijacked West Ham’s move for Solanke and he went there instead.
West Ham chief wanted Solanke but couldn’t compete with Spurs
It was then revealed to Hammers News that Hammers majority owner David Sullivan dearly wanted Solanke at West Ham but admitted he couldn’t compete with the money Tottenham paid.
The signing of Fullkrug has been a familiar story at West Ham for all the wrong reasons.
The German made three substitute appearances in the Premier League before an injury which has ruled him out for the six games since.
There are fears Fullkrug may not return to the fold until the new year.
And he has just headed back to Germany for the second time to have injections to aid his recovery.
While the jury is out on whether Solanke will be a success at Tottenham, West Ham opting to sign an ageing striker with a long history of injuries has left the club exposed.
Michail Antonio, 35 in March, and misfit 32-year-old Danny Ings are now Julen Lopetegui’s only striker options.
It means West Ham may have to try and ship more players out to raise funds for a new forward in January or the summer – regardless of what happens with Fullkrug.
There have already been links to a number of names.
Spurs crush new West Ham striker dream to dust
Now Spurs have crushed a new West Ham striker dream to dust before it even had a chance.
Hammers News understands one player who has impressed the West Ham hierarchy is Ipswich’s Liam Delap.
The Man City academy product was excellent in the defeat to the Hammers before the international break.
He showed his strength, pace, power and eye for goal by scoring the Ipswich equaliser.
It is said West Ham board members were so impressed Delap’s name found its way onto a shortlist of potential candidates to be the club’s next striker signing.
With Ipswich in danger of being relegated, Delap – 10 years Fullkrug’s junior – would be attainable for West Ham too.
He has already hit four goals in nine Premier League games.
But despite having signed Solanke, Tottenham are already on Delap’s case.
And Caught Offside claim Daniel Levy has put the wheels in motion on a deal for the striker its claimed Ipswich value between £30-35m.
It is claimed in the exclusive story that Spurs are unconvinced about Solanke and want Delap in the summer.
So West Ham face a choice. Try for Delap in January – when it is extremely unlikely Ipswich would sell – in a bid to beat Spurs.
Or wait until the summer when Tottenham and a host of other clubs may drive the price up even further.
One thing is for certain, another new striker will definitely be needed.
Ings and Antonio are out of contract in the summer, which will free up over £200k per week in wages.
West Ham will need a new young, dynamic forward after failing to sign Jhon Duran, Viktor Gyokeres and Julian Alvarez in recent years.
Delap looks the real deal.
But Tottenham’s proactive approach means the Hammers now face missing out on the next cab on the rank.
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