David Moyes must strive to strike a January deal with Real Madrid for rumoured West Ham United target Luka Jovic.

What’s the word?

According to the Mirror (01/11, p61), the Irons are looking to rival Leicester City in the race to lure Jovic away from the Santiago Bernabeu after being made available for a winter move by Real Madrid after a torrid start to life in Spain.

Los Blancos signed Jovic for £52.4million in 2019 on the back of a remarkable 27-goal haul for Eintracht Frankfurt, but the Serbian centre-forward has failed to take his skills from the Bundesliga to La Liga with just two goals across all competitions since becoming a Galactico.

Real boss Zinedine Zidane has only felt fit to start the 22-year-old in two La Liga fixtures and one Champions League Group Stage tie thus far this term, and his future now appears to lie elsewhere.

West Ham are said to be considering a loan approach in the upcoming January market that features an option to purchase at the end of the season, in a move that could see Jovic reunite with his former Frankfurt strike partner Sebastien Haller who left Eintracht for east London in a £45m deal the same summer.

Jovic’s talents were widely admired during his Frankfurt days, with manager Adi Hutter stating via Bundesliga.com: “There are players who need relatively few scoring chances.

“Jovic, for example, scores four times out of every five chances because he's a poacher and, when he's in the box, he knows where the goal is.”

“He's been the talk of Europe" Frankfurt CEO of Sport Fredi Bobic also said of Jovic, via Bundesliga.com, following his move to Real Madrid. “He's explosive and a real threat in front of goal and will be a big miss.”

Moyes’ time to strike

The talent Jovic demonstrated during his sensational season with Frankfurt which sparked Real Madrid to snap up the 8-cap international may not have been displayed in the Spanish capital, but his skill and potential can be rediscovered in the right setting.

Former Eintracht teammate Filip Kostic was full of praise for Jovic during the time together in Germany, lauding his fellow Serbia international who he provided five assists for during the 2018/19 Bundesliga season – the joint-highest assist to scorer combination that season.

“Jovic is just unbelievable!” Kostic said, via Bundesliga.com “He has outstanding timing and a feel for the goal.”

Jovic earned rave reviews from teammates and club staff during his final season in the Bundesliga as he proved to be a defender’s proverbial nightmare with 0.5 goals a game from 2.4 shots, yet could have boasted an even better haul than his 17 goals having missed 18 big chances as well, per SofaScore.

He further offered 0.9 key balls a game for five assists and seven big chances, and continues to be a threat up front despite rarely featuring for Madrid with 1.7 shots and 0.7 key balls per La Liga appearance this term with only an average 15.7 touches.

If Moyes is able to strike an agreement with Real, Jovic could be his ideal centre-forward signing this January. But the 22-year-old’s £8.7m-a-year contract (£167.3k-p/w) contract could cause West Ham a serious challenge if the Serbian believes he still has a future at the Santiago Bernabeu.

AND in other news, David Moyes enjoyed a narrow escape on a £31.5m sensation West Ham courted this summer.