Pole position: West Ham leading the race to sign ‘top class’ predator; he’s a Golden Boot winner

West Ham United are believed to be leading the transfer race for New York City striker Valentin Castellanos, according to a report by The Mirror.

The 23-year-old joined the MLS club on a season-long loan from Atletico Torque four years ago before making the switch permanently in 2019. He has since gone on to make 126 appearances at the Yankee Stadium, with 76 goal contributions during that time.

The Argentine’s contract with his current club isn’t set to expire until 2025, but after previously admitting that he wanted to leave New York in a bid to boost his chances of playing for his country, his future is very much up in the air.

It now appears that there is some Premier League interest in the 5 foot 10 predator in the form of West Ham.

The Mirror reported that West Ham are now in ‘pole position’ to secure Castellanos’ signature, with competitors River Plate ‘struggling’ to meet the £12.8m valuation that Ronny Deila’s side have put on the 23-year-old.

The report added that the asking price ‘won’t be any problem’ for the Irons, who believe that the attacker is a ‘gamble worth taking’ for the fee that New York City are demanding.

Despite a healthy seventh-place league finish and securing European football for next season, David Moyes is in desperate need of a new striker considering that Michail Antonio is the only natural centre-forward at West Ham.

With the Jamaica international now 32 and rather injury-prone, Castellanos could be the perfect candidate to provide some serious competition for the Hammers’ number nine.

The Mendoza-born talent, who was once hailed as a “top class” player by his manager Deila, has been in prolific form in the MLS this season, having scored seven goals and registered one assist in just ten