West Ham United have been severely underperforming this season and are lingering in 14th place in the Premier League standings in spite of undergoing a major squad rebuild in the summer.
Julen Lopetegui’s role as the head coach has been precarious though the Spaniard has managed to survive, thanks to a recent win against Wolverhampton Wanderers and a draw versus Bournemouth. Even though he should have done better, there are a number of fragile positions in the squad, not least the goalkeeper’s role.
West Ham’s primary goalkeeper Lukasz Fabianski has spent six years at the club and has been one of the league’s best shot-stoppers in that time. However, the former Polish international is aged 39 and does not have too many years in the tank. Likewise, Alphonse Areola is also past 30 and has not proven reliable as far as being a first-choice option is considered.
With that in mind, the Hammers are ‘scouting’ Freiburg youngster Noah Atubolu ahead of a potential move for him next year, according to Fabrizio Romano. The transfer insider has added that the German goalkeeper is a ‘potential future target’ for the Premier League side, who could invest some more money on newer acquisitions in the near future.
Atubolu a promising player
Noah Atubolu, aged just 22, is a regular member of the Freiburg starting eleven. He has made 12 appearances in the Bundesliga this season and kept four clean sheets. The Germany U21 international has an imposing presence in between the sticks, thanks to his height of 6 feet and 3 inches, while he is generally good with the ball at his feet as well.
The young goalie’s valuation on Transfermarkt is approximately £8 million, a fee that West Ham will be comfortable paying given that their possible new signing is a long-term option and one of the more promising names in the German top division.
If they manage to land Atubolu, the Londoners could shown Lukasz Fabianski the door with Alphonse Areola taking up the primary role and competing for minutes with the Freiburg player.
