Moyes eyeing £40m move for Premier League gem

West Ham United are keen on making a move for Nottingham Forest talisman Brennan Johnson this summer, according to Simon Jones of the Daily Mail.

Who is Brennan Johnson?

Johnson is one of Nottingham Forest’s own. Born in Nottingham, the forward entered the academy and hasn’t looked back ever since.

The Englishman was a crucial part of Forest’s shock promotion from the Championship in the 2021/22 season, with 19 goals in all competitions, including two in the play-offs.

Is Brennan Johnson leaving Nottingham Forest?

Whilst Johnson’s Nottingham Forest exit is far from a guarantee this summer, given their Premier League status, the Wales youngster has reportedly attracted plenty of interest.

This comes as little surprise, too, given the exceptional campaign that the “unbelievable” forward – as once hailed by former boss Sabri Lamouchi – had in the Premier League for the first time – scoring eight goals and assisting a further three to help keep Forest afloat.

Still young, Johnson has plenty of time for improvement, meaning that any club that did swoop in this summer would have themselves a player for both the present and the future.

As per Jones, West Ham are interested in the forward, though do face competition from Everton. Both clubs could battle it out for Johnson, who is reportedly valued at £40m by Forest.

The Hammers could certainly do with the goals that the Forest man could bring, that’s for sure – last summer’s £30.5m flop – Gianluca Scamacca – found the back of the net just three times in a total of 16 Premier League appearances.

Meanwhile, Michail Anontio’s form began to spiral slightly when it came to domestic action, only scoring on three occasions, despite making 33 appearances in the league last season.

Their lack of goalscorer very nearly cost the Hammers the ultimate price of relegation, before David Moyes guided them to safety. But, nonetheless, this is a precarious feeling they won’t want to face again, meaning that reinforcements are a must this summer.

With Forest’s valuation of Johnson reportedly as high as £40m, however, West Ham may need the financial boost of potentially winning the Europa Conference League if they are to consider pursuing the deal further.

Those at the London Stadium showed last summer that they are willing to break the bank for quality, though, having hit a new transfer record with the deal for Lucas Paqueta, which saw them splash out a record £51.3m.

Johnson may well find himself amongst West Ham’s most expensive signings, if the Hammers continue their interest in the forward and complete a deal.