Championship outfit Fulham are to pursue West Ham United loanee Alphonse Areola their main target if he doesn't sign with the Premier League club on a permanent basis, according to reporter Dean Jones who spoke to Give Me Sport.

The Cottagers are currently on course to seal promotion back to the top tier at the first time of asking after blowing Championship teams away with their attacking prowess, with the likes of Aleksandar Mitrovic, Fabio Carvalho, Neeskens Kebano and Harry Wilson all playing a big part in their success.

It may not come as any real surprise then that they are looking at their defensive in terms of potential transfers in the summer, with the goalkeeping department one area the Cottagers are seemingly determined to improve.

 

 

Not only has Areola been linked with a move back to the English capital, but they are also thought to be monitoring the situations of Burnley's Nick Pope and Manchester United's Dean Henderson.

The former's reported price tag of £20m could be a potential obstacle for Marco Silva's men, who could focus on Paris-St Germain's Areola who looks set to be deemed surplus to requirements once again at the Parc des Princes in the summer with the existing goalkeeping options Mauricio Pochettino has at his disposal already.

This may open the door for the Cottagers to pounce - and with West Ham unlikely to sign the Frenchman at this stage after only making one top-tier appearance so far this season - journalist Jones has provided a further boost to the current promotion favourites' supporters with the latest news that their former loanee is now their main target.

He said to Give Me Sport: "I know that Fulham’s main target will be Areola if they are to sign a goalkeeper, which they will because a goalkeeper is their priority.

"They’re just waiting to see if West Ham take up the option on Areola."

The Verdict:

Considering he's been at Craven Cottage before and impressed during the 2020/21 campaign, this could be a great move for the second-tier outfit but it would probably be preferable if they can strike a permanent agreement.

Another loan deal would be a good cheap option and would enable them to invest more in other areas - but building for the longer-term would be ideal and it would probably make the shot-stopper happy as well because he would have a place to settle down.

And in fairness, a temporary agreement would mean he could be offloaded easily if they were relegated back down to the Championship once again - but they need to really assert themselves as an established top-tier outfit for years to come.

A failure to do so could see them remain in the Championship for an extended period of time and considering they are a club with so much potential, this would be a real shame.

Getting a good fee for Fabio Carvalho could persuade officials in the English capital to strike a longer-term agreement for the goalkeeper, so it will be interesting to see what happens with these transfer sagas when the summer comes along.