West Ham are reportedly interested in a summer move for Montpellier’s English forward Stephy Mavididi.
David Moyes is keen to boost his attacking options ahead of the 2022/23 campaign to ease the burden on Michail Antonio. The Hammers have already announced the departure of Ukrainian forward Andriy Yarmolenko among their list of released players and will use the summer transfer window to strengthen in that department.
Chelsea’s Armando Broja and free agent Jesse Lingard have both been touted with moves to the London Stadium, while Mavididi has been linked with the Hammers for the second time this year. The 23-year-old scored eight goals and provided three assists in 30 Ligue 1 appearances for Montpellier last season, playing at both left-wing and as the team’s central striker.
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Mavididi is also reportedly of interest to other Premier League sides, including Brighton, Southampton and Everton and Marseille in France. That’s according to transfer guru Fabrizio Romano, who said that there’s a ‘good chance’ the forward will be on the move in the coming weeks.
Who is Stephy Mavididi?
Mavididi was born in Derby and started his career at Arsenal, joining them as a youth player in 2011 and staying for seven years, turning professional in 2015 but failing to make a senior appearance for the club. He spent three seasons out on loan from the Gunners, playing in the Championship with Preston North End either side of two spells in League One with Charlton Athletic.
Mavididi then left Arsenal in 2018 to sign for Italian giants Juventus, who were made aware of him after he was scouted by Giorgio Chiellini’s brother. He then became the first English player since David Platt in 1992 to feature for the Juventus first team after featuring in a 2-1 loss away to SPAL in Serie A.
After failing to build on his sole appearance for the Old Lady, Mavididi went on the move once again - this time to France, where he spent the 2019/20 campaign on loan to Dijon. He impressed with the Reds, marking his first full senior campaign as a regular player by scoring eight goals in 28 games across all competitions. His performances led to Montpellier making a move for him in June 2020, with the club parting with around £5.5million in order to acquire his services from Juventus.
An England junior international, Mavididi has represented the Three Lions at Under-17, Under-18, Under-19 and Under-20 levels, with his last appearance for his country coming in 2017. He is eligible to represent the Congo national team but has previously stated a desire to represent England at a senior level.
