David Moyes must urge West Ham United to strike a deal with ACF Fiorentina for Felipe Anderson to spend the remainder of the season in the Serie A.
What’s the word?
According to Gazzetta dello Sport (20/1, 09:55), Fiorentina have marked Anderson as a potential alternative target to Papu Gomez.
The Artemio Franchi Stadium side are thought to be struggling to get a deal for Atalanta BC veteran Gomez over the line, with interest firm in the €10m (£9m) forward who dreams of a move to Inter Milan.
Anderson is currently on loan with FC Porto but has struggled to establish himself at the Liga NOS giants, making only six appearances across all competitions and featuring in just two of Sergio Conceicao’s top-flight matchday squads since October.
The Brazilian had been linked with a potential early return to the London Stadium to secure a new loan move, as West Ham bid to protect his market value ahead of a likely permanent exit in the summer.
But recent claims from Portugal suggest the Dragoes are no longer interested in being separated from the 27-year-old this month, having been struck by a string of coronavirus cases and seeing potential deals for a replacement fall through.
Spartak Moscow attacker Aleksandr Kokorin is another alternative track for Fiorentina to explore, should Anderson not join, with Gomez considered an impossible reach for Cesare Prandelli’s Tuscan outfit.
A dream destination?
Moyes should be banging on the door to David Sullivan’s office demanding that the West Ham co-owner and chairman secures Anderson a move to Fiorentina this month, as the Serie A side could prove to be a dream destination for all involved.
Anderson is not getting the chances to feature he or West Ham need at Porto, and it will likely take a vast outbreak of Covid-19 cases for the Brazilian to gain a prominent role in Conceicao’s plans anytime soon.
But Fiorentina represent a fresh start for the £85,000-per-week winger, now valued by TransferMarkt at £22.5m just two years on from being rated at £40.5m, with Prandelli’s side 14th in the Serie A and in desperate need of attacking reinforcements.
Only Parma Calcio 1913 have scored fewer goals (14) than Fiorentina (18) after the opening 18 games of the season, while the Artemio Franchi Stadium natives have also failed to find the back of the net in seven matches to date.
Anderson knows the Serie A well from his five years with SS Lazio, where the two-time Brazil international’s form sparked West Ham to pay £36m to bring him to the Premier League in a then-club record deal that could rise to £41.5m.
The attacker struck home eight times and created nine goals in 32 outings during his final year at the Stadio Olimpico, to take his Biancocelesti record to 34 goals, 39 assists in 177 games across all competitions.
If West Ham are considering Anderson’s situation with a view to selling him in the summer, Moyes must convince Sullivan that Fiorentina – and not Porto – is the best home for the forward to rediscover his lost form.
AND in other news, West Ham are considering a £15.5m-rated striker without a goal since October to replace Seb Haller…