West Ham 'reinvesting Issa Diop money' to sign £17m star at London Stadium | OneFootball

West Ham United have ‘been pursuing’ Paris Saint-Germain defender Thilo Kehrer in recent weeks, according to journalist Dean Jones.

The Hammers are eager to boost their options at the heart of defence before September’s deadline, and the 25-year-old appears to be at the top of David Moyes’ wish list.

What is the latest news involving Kehrer?

Sky Sports reporter Dharmesh Sheth recently revealed that West Ham have made an improved offer for Kehrer after having their first bid rejected for the centre-back by PSG.

A report from the Daily Mail claims that the east London outfit offered an initial £10 million for the Germany international, although that fell short of the Parisian’s £17m valuation.

However, Moyes admitted that he is eager to ‘freshen up’ his squad following the opening day defeat to Manchester City, especially after summer signing Nayef Aguerd picked up a long-term injury.

“We need it, and we need to freshen up a bit, we are a bit stale at the moment,” said the Scottish tactician. “Look, our centre-back [Aguerd] gets injured in a pre-season friendly and we can’t do anything about that. So, we have attempted to do it.

It remains to be seen if PSG accept West Ham’s improved offer, but signing a central defender certainly appears to be a priority for Moyes.

What has Jones said about Kehrer?

Jones has confirmed to GiveMeSport that Kehrer is a player firmly on West Ham’s radar, although states that they face stiff competition for his signature from La Liga outfit Sevilla.

He told GMS: “Kehrer is the one that they’ve been pursuing, and they’d basically be reinvesting the money from (Issa) Diop to get him because it’d be a pretty similar fee if they were to sign him.

“But they have got competition now from Sevilla, and that’s quite significant competition for a player like that.”

Would Kehrer be a good signing?

Keher moved to PSG from Schalke back in 2018 and has gone on to make 128 appearances in all competitions since, registering six goal contributions and claiming three Ligue 1 titles.

As per FBref, Kehrer ranked in the 99th percentile for pass competition, 91st for attempted passes, 89th for non-penalty goals and 84th for aerial duels won among his positional peers over the last year.

Kehrer could be an ideal replacement for Issa Diop, therefore, providing the strength in depth that Moyes desires at centre-back for the current campaign and beyond.