Villa and West Ham keen on Leverkusen-linked Sporting star

West Ham and Aston Villa are interested in signing the Portugal attacker Pedro Goncalves from Sporting CP, according to a report.

Goncalves, 25, has scored 74 goals in 169 games for Sporting since first signing in 2020, picking up 48 assists along the way.

The two-time Portuguese international won the Primeira Liga under highly-rated Sporting manager Ruben Amorim in 2021, the club’s first league title in 19 years.

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The ex-Wolves youth-team prospect has earned praise for his versatility and tactical flexibility, featuring all across the attack and he also boasts a background as a central midfielder.

“Pote” has a contract which expires with the Lions in 2027 and his buyout clause has been set by the club at €80 million.

It’s unlikely that Sporting would do a deal for less than €40m and last summer were revealed to have turned down an approach from Xabi Alonso’s Bayer Leverkusen worth some €30m.

It is expected that Leverkusen will be back in for Goncalves this summer but the race is hotting up with Premier League interest now reported by A Bola.

West Ham looking at renewal but Villa need to sell before they buy

West Ham will be looking to reset in summer with the future of manager David Moyes up in the air.

The future of Lucas Paqueta, meanwhile, needs sorting this summer with Manchester City reportedly keen on the Brazil playmaker.

Villa, meanwhile, are going to have to sell before they buy. Their latest financial results were among the most dismal published in recent months by Premier League clubs with a reported £120m pre-tax loss for the 2022-23 season.

Unai Emery’s side are in danger of breaching FFP and Profit and Sustainability rules and must offload players this summer.

Until they do so, any links with Goncalves are likely to remain unfulfilled.