West Ham could raid Premier League rival for striker if chase for France Under-21 star fails

West Ham are interested in signing Marseille striker Elye Wahi, talkSPORT understands.

Wahi, who only signed for his current club from Lens last summer, is valued at around £25million.

The 22-year-old has scored three goals in 14 appearances for the club but made only seven starts in Ligue 1 this season.

West Ham also have Nottingham Forest’s Taiwo Awoniyi on their radar following Niclas Fullkrug’s recent injury.

talkSPORT understands Fullkrug is set to be ruled out for three months with a hamstring injury he sustained in their FA Cup defeat against Aston Villa.

Awoniyi was Forest’s top scorer in their Premier League comeback season in the 2022/23 campaign with ten goals.

However, he has only netted a further seven since, with the striker missing a large chunk of action due to injuries last year.

The 27-year-old has played just 382 minutes under Nuno Espirito Santo this season and made only two Premier League starts.

His first and only goal of the campaign came off the bench in their 3-0 league win away at Wolves last week.

West Ham currently have one fit striker in their squad, with Danny Ings being brought on for Fullkrug in the FA Cup defeat at Villa.

Speaking on the injured German, head coach Graham Potter said on Monday: “It’s fair to say it’s a significant one.

“Anybody watching the game, when a player pulls up like that you know that something fairly serious has happened.

“So it’s still early in terms of full diagnosis I would suggest, but nevertheless a significant one, a number of weeks.

“Will it be months? A number of weeks probably adds up to months, yes. So yeah, I would say that.”

The Hammers are also without Michail Antonio as he is recovering from a broken leg he sustained in a horror car crash last month.

Club captain Jarrod Bowen is another attacking absence for West Ham with a fractured foot.

West Ham have endured a tough season which saw Julen Lopetegui sacked as manager last week.

They are 14th in the Premier League table, seven points clear of the relegation zone.