LONDON (AP) — Italian striker Gianluca Scamacca joined West Ham from Sassoulo for a fee of 30 million pounds ($36 million) on Tuesday as the Premier League club finally brought in help and competition to Michail Antonio up front.
Scamacca, 23, has signed a five-year deal, with an option for a further 12 months, after being linked with moves to higher-profile sides like Paris Saint-Germain and Juventus.
He scored 16 goals in 36 Serie A appearances last season and played seven times for Italy, where he has been compared to former national team striker Christian Vieri due to his power and presence . He is 1.95 meters (6ft 5in), a similar height to his footballing idol, Zlatan Ibrahimovic.
West Ham manager David Moyes has had to rely on Antonio to lead his attack since the club sold Sebastien Haller to Ajax in January last year.
Moyes could now be back in the market for a centre-back after new signing Nayef Aguerd suffered ankle ligament damage in a friendly against Rangers last week.
The 26-year-old Moroccan international, who signed with French club Rennes last month, has undergone surgery and could be out until the end of the year.
___
More AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports
Comments are closed.