West Ham United want VfL Bochum defensive midfielder Cajetan Lenz | OneFootball

West Ham United are monitoring VfL Bochum defensive midfielder Cajetan Benjamin Lenz and have made contact with his agent, according to Sky Sports Germany journalist Florian Plettenberg.

West Ham manager Nuno Espirito Santo wants reinforcements at the London Stadium club for the second half of the campaign.

Lenz is one of the names on the radar of the Hammers, but they face fierce competition for his services as he has plenty of suitors keen on him.

His agent, Makram Naceur, has revealed that the likes of West Ham have got in touch as they look to sign the 19-year-old German.

However, the teenage sensation only wants to focus on helping Bochum return to the Bundesliga following relegation from the German top-flight last term.

Things have not gone well for the club in the 2. Bundesliga as they are just three points off the relegation places after 13 games.

Lenz has continued to impress in the second division and only Bayern Munich are not interested in signing him in the Bundesliga.

West Ham will hope to pip all of them to his services but their place in the Premier League table could count against them.

The Hammers are 17th in the table after 12 games, and leaving Bochum for a club fighting relegation may not exactly appeal to Lenz.

He is not the only midfielder on their radar, and it is unknown whether he is at the top of their wishlist.

West Ham cannot afford to make any more transfer mistakes after spending much in recent transfer windows with little or nothing to show for it.

They need players capable of hitting the ground running in the Premier League, and going after those proven in the English top-flight could be better.

The Hammers have managed to improve significantly at both ends of the pitch in recent games, winning two and drawing one of their last three league games.

However, failure to properly strengthen their squad in key areas in January could come with consequences, and Nuno has to get things right.