West Ham ‘plan to activate Alphonse Areola’s £7.6m buy option and sign him on a permanent deal’ despite only playing the PSG goalkeeper once in the Premier League this season
- Alphonse Areola deputised for West Ham in the Europa League this season
- The PSG academy graduate has spent all of his last six campaigns on loan
- West Ham are reportedly keen on signing the keeper permanently this summer
- The club will meet with agents this week to discuss a deal, according to reports
West Ham are reportedly plotting to trigger Alphonse Areola’s £7.6 million permanent transfer clause, following his season-long loan spell with the club.
Eager to find a long-term replacement for 37-year-old goalkeeper Lukasz Fabianski, West Ham are speaking with Areola’s agents this week in a bid to sign him permanently, according to reports.
Although the French goalkeeper only managed one Premier League appearance during his time away from Paris Saint-Germain, he performed impressively in other competitions, making 11 appearances for West Ham in the Europa League.
Alphonse Areola made 18 appearances in all competitions for West Ham this campaign
David Moyes managed to steer West Ham to a top seven finish for a second successive season
According to Fabrizio Romano, West Ham are ‘expected to trigger’ the buy option clause set out in Areola’s contract and ‘prepared to pay’ the fee to keep him in London.
The PSG academy graduate, who has been on loan away from the French capital for the last six seasons, still has one year left on his current deal.
Therefore, faced with the prospect of Areola exiting on a free next summer, PSG will likely cash in on the Frenchman this summer while they can.
During his time out on loan since 2015, Areola has earned caps for Fulham, Villareal and even Real Madrid.
He also won the 2018 World Cup with France as their third goalkeeper, despite not seeing any action on the pitch.
Lukasz Fabianski featured in all but one of West Ham’s Premier League matches this campaign
Fabianski has been David Moyes’ first-choice goalkeeper since 2018 following his arrival from Swansea and will likely keep his place between the sticks in the near future.
However, as West Ham secured European football for a second successive campaign – by way of the Europa Conference League – Areola will still have ample opportunity to show his worth even as a back-up.
The 29-year-old played a pivotal role in West Ham’s journey to the Europa League semi-finals, which they ultimately lost 1-0 to Eintracht Frankfurt.