After the sales of Lucas Perez and Marko Arnautović, West Ham United's boss Manuel Pellegrini was looking to get replacements in very early.

But it looks like the Hammers are going to have to look elsewhere, as the Chileans top targets Salomon Rondon and Maxi Gomez slipped between their fingers.

Despite previous reports of a deal being close, Rondon is set to rejoin Rafael Benitez in China at Dalian Yifang and Gomez opted to sign for Spanish giants Valencia CF instead, leaving the club with empty hands, despite reportedly triggering the players' £44.5m release clause.

Moving on from Gomez

With Pellegrini aiming to sign at least two new strikers, here is a list of five potential alternatives named by an insider - ExWHUemployee...

1. Sébastien Haller


The 25-year-old reportedly reappeared on Pellegrini's radar after the club held interest in signing the Eintracht Frankfurt forward last year, but ultimately opted against it.

According to a reliable La Gazzetta Dello Sport journalist Nicolò Schira, the Hammers have already placed a £36m bid for the striker with the deal looking likely to be completed in the coming weeks.

The Frenchman experienced a very impressive 2018/2019 campaign scoring 20 goals and registering 12 assists in 39 Bundesliga + UEFA Europa League games.

Although he indeed appeared as a top target following Maxi Gomez's failure, according to French news outlet L'Equipe, the Hammers' Director of Football, Mario Husillos, is going to have to work very hard to convince the ex-Utrecht striker to switch to the London Stadium, as he's reportedly interested in teams with bigger footballing status than West Ham.

2. Wissam Ben Yedder


His name should be familiar to every West Ham supporter, as during Slaven Bilic's reign at the club he was one of the players heavily linked with the club.

Unfortunately, the current West Brom manager rejected his services for as little as £8m due to concerns about his physique, with the forward being only 5 ft 7.

Currently, to even have a chance of acquiring the services of the French international, the Hammers would need to trigger his £35m release clause.

The 28-year-old's numbers from last season look astonishing. Eight goals in eight Europa League games, as well as 18 goals and nine assists in 35 La Liga Santander matches, make Ben Yedder look like a real deal.

Unfortunately, the deal looks very unlikely due to the proposed Manchester United interest.

3. Moussa Marega


Probably the most likely transfer to happen due to the fact he's the only target to express his interest in joining West Ham.

Although Marega isn't a fan favourite due to the lack of technical ability, you can't say a bad word about his goalscoring ability as he's a proven striker in the most prestigious European competition - the Champions League.

Last season the 28-year-old managed 21 goals and 11 assists in all competitions, but the highlight of his campaign would definitely be scoring in six consecutive Champions League outings, including one in a tie against AS Roma, in which he also managed to set up FC Porto's injury-time winner to eliminate the Italians from the competition.

He's a powerful and very fast forward who's able to find the back of the net with both feet as well as his head, which is something that West Ham currently lacks. He'd be reportedly available for around £25m-£30m.

4. Andre Silva


After a very frustrating 2017/2018 Serie A campaign with AC Milan, the Portuguese striker was sent on loan to Sevilla to try and rediscover his FC Porto form.

Unfortunately, after a good bit of form at the start of the season, his confidence went down after being dropped to the bench, before ultimately a Patella injury ended his season in March.

Silva scored eight goals in the first 13 league games, including a debut hat-trick against Rayo Vallecano, but after that, he's only managed to score one league goal, ending his counter on nine, as he couldn't hit the back of the net in any of six Europa League games.

The 23-year-old is set to leave San Siro following the January incoming of Krzysztof Piątek, that pushed Silva even further behind in the pecking order. The Hammers believe they can get him in on loan with an option to buy as Rondon's China moving is edging closer to completion with every single day.

5. Fedor Chalov


The probably most unexpected target of the bunch, but definitely one too keep an eye on.

The 21-year-old has been a CSKA regular since 2017 and has been reportedly on the aim of top European clubs, including Arsenal.

The quick, 5 ft 11 striker has already proved himself as a clinical centre-forward with a very good eye for a pass.

17 goals and seven assists last season look like very impressive numbers for a player that young. The main point of his season will definitely be a goal scored in a 3-0 win against Real Madrid, at the Santiago Bernabeu.

It's not currently known how much the club from Moscow value their biggest talent at, but the sum talked about looks to be around £15m-£25m

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