Wantaway West Ham Forward Sparks Striker Merry-Go-Round - Who is Going Where?

West Ham in the Middle of Striker Shuffle - Who is Going Where?

West Ham's attempts to replace Michail Antonio have been nothing short of catastrophic - for years, the club hierarchy tried to oust the Jamaican from the team time and again, with the signings of Gianluca Scamacca, Danny Ings, Sebastian Haller and more. But on each occasion, Antonio found himself back in the starting lineup, with the Hammer's big money signings failing to live up to pre-season expectations every time.

Now with Antonio out of the team and training with U21s following his near-fatal car crash last year, West Ham's striker shortcomings have been highlighted in even starker contrast - summer signing Callum Wilson certainly brings Premier League-proven experience, but at 33 years of age, he isn’t exactly a long-term solution. However, the antithesis of West Ham’s goal-scoring conundrum is epitomised by a certain wantaway German.

🚨 Niclas Fullkrug is the profile which Milan consider ideal as the forward reinforcement in January. Tare is working intensely and will continue to work in the coming days to sign him.

Further contacts between Milan and West Ham and between Milan and Fullkrug’s agent in an aim… pic.twitter.com/FvWxNFdo71

— Milan Eye (@MilanEye) December 14, 2025

Who Is On Their Way Out?

The man in question is Niclas Füllkrug - so highly rated after an excellent showing at Euro 2024, many saw the 31-year-old as a serious coup for the Hammers, and off the back of a 15-goal season for Borussia Dortmund, he was seen as the perfect target man to complement the West Ham set-up.

#Milan , all-in per il centravanti richiesto da #Allegri https://t.co/BpvJzCM8pn pic.twitter.com/12icchVR9d

— calciomercato.com (@cmdotcom) December 13, 2025

However, 29 appearances, three goals, numerous woeful first touches and countless slow-motion sprints later, the German looks to be headed out the door as yet another failed striking experiment.

Remarkably, his destination is not reflective of a player in retrograde - for all of the clumsiness and lack of finesse Fullkrug has exhibited in his time at West Ham, his agent must have been meticulously editing every touch into a goal or assist, as the German has been stunningly listed as a top priority for Italian giants AC Milan, according to calciomercato.com on X.

With January signing Santiago Gimenez failing to live up to expectations in the fashion capital of the world, it seems the Rossoneri are looking for a more mature, experienced head to lead the line - with the side just a point behind league leaders Inter Milan, experience and mileage trump youth and exuberance every day.

It worked with the likes of Olivier Giroud, who helped the outfit to their last Serie A title in 2022, as well as an ageing Zlatan Ibrahimovic who, alongside Giroud, made up the other half of one of Europe’s oldest strike partnerships at the time.

Olivier Giroud becomes the first Milan player to score 10+ Serie A goals in three straight seasons since Alexandre Pato 🔴⚫ pic.twitter.com/T14jJ5orrn

— B/R Football (@brfootball) January 14, 2024

However, the gulf between Fullkrug and his two stylistically similar predecessors is gargantuan, and it is a jaw-dropping development that Milan see the German as a viable starting striker candidate.

Who is Coming In?

Of course, with the seemingly inevitable exit of Fullkrug, Nuno Espirito Santo must bring in a replacement, lest he want to be left with Callum Wilson as the club’s only recognised centre-forward, and with the news of the German’s potential destination also came a promising update on a successor.

The Hammer’s number one target comes in the form of Sassuolo’s Andrea Pinamonti, fresh off the back of assisting both goals in a 2-2 draw with, you guessed it, AC Milan. If you are into your star signs and healing crystals, you could view it as a sign.

TRANSFER NEWS:
West Ham have made inquiries over striker Andrea Pinamonti the Italian was had been loaned out by his parent club this year to Genoa where he had a successful year getting 12G/A

Talks are at an early stage but the 26 year old has dreams of playing for Italy pic.twitter.com/kqaujzg5br

— Callum White (@CW1708) July 15, 2025

Linked to the club in the summer, it speaks volumes that West Ham have kept tabs on the Italian since then, and his performance at the weekend would have done nothing to diminish their interest - however, with Lazio also circling the striker, the Hammer's will need to make a move sooner rather than later.

Six years Fullkrug’s junior, Pinamonti is entering his physical prime, and he comes with a history of high-profile interest. Back in his teenage years, the one-time Italian international was linked with Liverpool, and even managed a goal in his time at Inter Milan.

Andrea Pinamonti with a collected finish 🥶#CagliariSassuolo pic.twitter.com/flx2usDO0S

— Lega Serie A (@SerieA_EN) October 31, 2025

However, he never reached his potential with his parent club, and he was moved on in 2022 when the outfit deemed him to have reached his ceiling, not quite good enough for arguably Italy’s biggest team.

Limited to just 10 games for Inter, Pinamonti has instead gathered his experience at a host of middling top-flight clubs such as Genoa, Empoli, Frosinone and most recently Sassuolo.

A similar profile to Fullkrug, Pinamonti isn’t exactly a speedster - at 186 cm, he is similar to the German in that he relies on his in-the-box movement and striking instincts to find himself in the right place at the right time. However, unlike Fullkrug, Pinamonti has considerable ability with the ball at his feet.

Fullkrug a full 5 yards offside, still gets beaten to the ball 💀

pic.twitter.com/EqznrY2brz

— No Context Prem (@NoContextEPL) August 29, 2024

This season alone, his shot-creating actions per 90 (1.78) stand a full 0.46 clear of Füllkrug (1.32), while the Italian’s shots per 90 stats (2.59, 1.19 on target) completely eclipse those of the German (1.98, 0.66 on target).

To simply break down the role of striker, it is their job to create and take as many shots as possible throughout a game, and through the first half of their respective season, it is Pinamonti who is consistently having a bigger impact on games than his German counterpart. His more creative profile and diverse attacking approach offer considerably more than the German's one-dimensional style.

This may partly be down to the Italian receiving more minutes - he has played seven games more than Füllkrug in all competitions this season - but to be given minutes in the first place, you need to be actively helping your team as a player on the pitch, something which Pinamonti has been doing far more frequently than Füllkrug.

Spanner in the Works?

Despite Fullkrug to AC Milan and Pinamonti to West Ham looking like the most likely outcome for this striker swap, there are still plenty of potential flies in the ointment that could see the whole deal collapse.

It turns out that Milan have also registered their interest in Arsenal striker Gabriel Jesus, who, in competing with the trio of Viktor Gyokeres, midfielder-turned-striker Mikel Merino and countless injuries, has fallen to third in the Gunners' pecking order.

An outrageously talented player on his day, and a totally different profile to the earmarked Fullkrug, the Brazilian will undoubtedly be in search of increased minutes, as his role at Arsenal is unlikely to ever shift away from backup striker.

Things become even more complicated when West Ham's interest in both Santiago Gimenez and Gabriel Jesus is added to the mix - with four strikers linked between two clubs, someone will inevitably not get the move they are after. In truth, any of Pinamonti, Jesus and Gimenez would be a marked improvement on Fullkrug - it just remains to be seen which one will end up signing.

🚨🆕 #ACMilan 🇲🇽 West Ham are interested in Santiago Giménez, expected to leave Milan!

👀 Real Betis, Frankfurt, Sunderland, Leeds United and Brentford are also monitoring him.

📌 Talks are still at an early stage. https://t.co/7G5rKBtqQG pic.twitter.com/7OWs6vyNJ5

— Ekrem KONUR (@Ekremkonur) December 13, 2025

West Ham do not want a repeat of the Promise David debacle - close to signing the Union Saint-Gilloise striker, the Canadian eventually turned them down, as he voiced his preference to stay at a side competing in the Champions League as opposed to West Ham, who are fighting a seemingly inevitable relegation battle in the English top flight.

Still just 28, Jesus has more than enough time to become a starting striker somewhere, and Italian football has seen countless out-of-form Premier League players experience a radical shift in fortunes - think of the likes of Romelu Lukaku, Scott McTominay, Jamie Vardy and numerous others.

It seems the Italian top flight is the perfect place to get your career back on track, and despite all of Fullkrug’s shortcomings, there is certainly a good chance that in a different league, with a more supportive fanbase, he could have some excellent seasons as he enters the twilight of his career.

However, he may not be given the chance - if Jesus is signed by Milan, the move would derail both an escape route from West Ham as well as Pinaonti’s arrival at the London stadium. Of course, there will be other suitors, but the longer Fullkrug is at the Hammer’s, the smaller his market value becomes.

"There's no point in sugarcoating it" 😳

Niclas Fullkrug's agent admits that leaving West Ham in January would 'make sense' ⚒️https://t.co/zKfBsx19TQ pic.twitter.com/RdZbcu7cmu

— Mirror Football (@MirrorFootball) November 3, 2025

That is why selling him in January is of paramount importance. He may end up going elsewhere, but as long as he is off the books at the Hammers, all parties will be happy.