After a season in which their strikers have barely scored, West Ham need to ensure that they’re not relying on wide men or attacking midfielders to chip in with their fair share.

David Moyes may or may not be at the club at the end of the current season, and that also applies to technical director, Tim Steidten.

Clearly, the powers that be need to bed down the direction that the club are going in, in order to bring in new players.

West Ham want Karamoko Dembele

Summer signings are hardly likely to be invested in the East Londoner’s project if the club themselves aren’t really sure where they’re heading.

One area that the club desperately need to concentrate on is their front men. Michail Antonio and Danny Ings between them have scored just four goals this season per WhoScored.

They’ve been lucky that the likes of Mo Kudus and Jarrod Bowen have chipped in regularly to win games, otherwise Moyes would almost certainly have been sacked by now.

Both Antonio and Ings are likely to be moved on in any event, and the question as to who to replace them with is one that should be being considered now.

According to HITC, former Celtic wonder kid, Karamoko Dembele, could be that man.

Now 21 years of age, Dembele has been enjoying a fantastic stint at Blackpool whilst on loan from Brest.

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The outlet note he has seven goals and 12 assists already, but the Hammers might need to move quickly.

That’s because there’s also apparent interest from Leicester, Leeds, Southampton, Fulham, Brentford, Wolves and Everton.

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Karamoko Dembele has impressed many with his performances at Blackpool this season and the 21-year-old could be on the move this summer. 

The midfielder is on loan with the English club from Stade Brestois as he moved to League One in search of more minutes.

Dembele has starred in an attacking midfield role at Bloomfield Road, managing seven goals and 12 assists in 40 games; with HITC now reporting that his displays have drawn widescale interest ahead of the summer with Championship clubs Leeds United, Leicester City, Middlesbrough and Southampton eyeing a move.

The problem for them is that Premier League teams have also taken note of what the 21-year-old is doing; with Everton, West Ham, Fulham, Brentford, Wolves and Nottingham Forest all said to be keeping tabs on Dembele as well.

The midfielder has a contract with Stade Brest until 2026 so the youngster’s future is in the French club’s hands.

The Ligue 1 outfit may want to keep the player following his current loan spell but the good news for Dembele is that he will not be short of options ahead of the new season.

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There are so many issues with the Scottish national team just now that it’s difficult to figure out where the biggest problems lie. A complete lack of capable strikers or centre backs is a big problem for now, but losing one of their most gifted youngsters to England is yet another blow.

Karamoko Dembele has been spoken about for a long time. He’s still only 16 but made his debut for Celtic last season and looked impressive. He made his U20 debut when he was only 13 and is destined to be a big star in the future.

READ MORE: Reports suggest German and Italian giants would need to offer at least £25m to tempt Celtic into selling ace

The prospect of building a national team around younger talents like Dembele, Scott McTominay and Billy Gilmour suggested the future could be bright for Scotland.

That’s no longer possible after a report in The Herald confirmed that Dembele had decided to pledge his allegiance to England for now. He had played for both countries at youth level but the report indicated he will completely focus on England going forward.

Of course that can still change until he makes a competitive appearance for England in a senior game, but it’s hard to see much changing and convincing him to come back to Scotland.

Realistically the only hope would come if it turns out he’s not good enough for England, which would also mean he wouldn’t be as much of a game changed for Scotland as it’s hoped he will be.

We’ve seen Aiden McGeady and James McCarthy opt to play for Ireland in the past, but it’s the first time in memory that a player has actively chosen to play for England instead.

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Arsenal are reportedly interested in Celtic youngster Karamoko Dembele, but they’ll have to fend off some serious competition to win the race for his signature.

It’s been a decent start to the Premier League campaign for the Gunners who sit in third place after eight games, with Unai Emery giving youth a chance this year as he eyes building a long-term plan at the Emirates.

SEE MORE: Man Utd face competition from Arsenal for in-form £15m-rated attacking ace

That vision and strategy could also be reflected in their transfer business as well as giving the likes of homegrown stars such as Joe Willock and Buyako Saka a chance, as The Sun claim that they’ve set their sights on Celtic youngster Dembele.

The 16-year-old has wasted no time in making a positive impression, and the report notes that Paris Saint-Germain, Juventus and Borussia Dortmund are all keeping tabs on him too which says a lot in itself about how highly-rated he is around Europe.

With that in mind, it remains to be seen if Arsenal can win the scrap for his signature, while it will be interesting to see how much it could cost any interested party to prise him away from the Scottish giants in the near future.

Dembele’s current contract runs until 2021, at which point he will have turned 18 and will be in line to pen a professional deal. Whether that’s with Celtic or not though remains to be seen as Arsenal and the other European giants mentioned above could be biding their time and preparing to swoop for the talented youngster.

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Traditionally we expect to see the English Premier League clubs poaching young talent from other countries for their youth systems. According to reports, Celtic have bucked this trend and have managed to entice Tobi Oluwayemi to join them from Spurs.

A story in The Daily Record has reported that Celtic have signed Tobi Oluwayemi from Spurs on a three year deal.

The youngster plays in goals and has been capped at youth level by England. Interestingly he has played with new teammate Karamoko Dembele in the English youth teams.

The Daily Record also report that Celtic are keeping an aye on English academy teams in their search for new players. They made a similar move to sign Armstrong Oko-Flex from Arsenal last season and the youngster was involved in some first team squads towards the end of last season.

READ MORE: South American starlet set to choose Premier League giants over Celtic

Oluwayemi had been speaking about his excitement of making the move to Glasgow. He said: “I know Karamoko very well and he has told me all about Celtic, the size of the club, the great supporters and the club’s tradition for giving young players an opportunity.”

He went on to say: “I am very excited about this move and I will be working hard, giving everything to the club to progress and make the most of this great opportunity.”

He is unlikely to push for a first team spot immediately due to the presence of Craig Gordon and Scott Bain, however there’s no obvious third choice keeper after Dorus De Vries left in the summer. An injury could see the young star involved in the first team squad sooner rather than later.

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Celtic starlet Karamoko Dembele is reportedly at the centre of a transfer tug-of-war between Premier League giants Chelsea and Manchester City.

The 13-year-old is considered a star for the future and Celtic boss Brendan Rodgers is undoubtedly keen to keep hold of him rather than lose him before he’s even had a chance to break into the first team.

However, according to The Independent, he is already coming under intense pressure to persuade the talented teenager that Celtic is the best place for him at this stage of his career and that he should snub the opportunity to move to England.

Both Chelsea and City are said to be keen on snapping him up, and a move to either club would be a huge move for the starlet.

Dembele was a surprise inclusion in an Under-20s game in October, and although he won’t be rushed, it was a statement of intent from Celtic in the sense that they won’t hold him back and will give him opportunities to play that he may not get elsewhere.

Given that he doesn’t even turn 14 until next February, it will be important for Celtic to protect his best interests and not allow him to get carried away with transfer speculation.

Nevertheless, with the report claiming that Pep Guardiola and Antonio Conte are ready to battle it out for his signature, it will be difficult to ignore given the power and appeal of the Premier League.

Meanwhile, it’s also added in the report from the Independent that Dembele is at the centre of another tug-of-war with both England and Scotland both laying claim to him at international level.

There is plenty of hype surrounding the 13-year-old, and there’s a long way to go before he proves that it’s deserved.

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Manchester City are reportedly keen on adding 13-year-old Celtic starlet Karamoko Dembele to their academy after he was recently put in the spotlight.

The youngster made the headlines last week after featuring for Celtic’s Under-20s side, which unsurprisingly resulted in significant media coverage given his age.

However, according to The Sun, City have been tracking him for months as part of their recruitment drive to add talented young stars for the future to their academy.

“He has been on the radar for a number of months now. He is very talented,” a City source told The Sun.

“The club is always searching around Europe for another potential star and Dembele is one being looked at.”

Despite certain sections of supporters and media criticising the decision to play such a young player in a big game that would predictably have ensured he attracted significant interest, the report goes on to explain that perhaps there is a theory behind Celtic’s decision.

It’s said that the Scottish giants specifically played Dembele in the match as a way of proving that they have developed his talent, thus protecting them if another club tries to sign him which would in turn then involve a significant compensation pay-out.

While it remains to be seen whether or not Dembele becomes the latest youngster to join the City ranks as the club look to develop talent at a very young age, the attraction of moving to Manchester is evident.

It’s added in the report that City pay school fees for their youngsters which will of course be appealing to parents of prospective players, and so there may well be plenty of work that goes into convincing the 13-year-old and his family that the Etihad is the best place for his future.

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Highly-rated Celtic youngster Karamoko Dembele made his debut for the club’s Under-20s side as a late substitute against Hearts on Monday night, at the age of just thirteen.

Dembele was a surprise inclusion in the squad for the encounter, but the biggest shock of the night came when he replaced Jack Aitchison late on.

Ultimately, he was helped by the fact that many of the players that would have ordinarily featured in the game were away due to international call-ups, but he will have been delighted to have been given an opportunity on such a big stage at such a young age.

It could be argued that he’s far too young to be featuring in such a game, and Celtic would do well to protect him at 13 and continue to nurture his talent in a different environment.

Nevertheless, it appears as though they aren’t afraid to throw him into the mix and test him, and it will have certainly been a memorable night for the barely-teenage ace who will hope to use the experience to his advantage and continue to develop his game and become a part of Celtic’s long-term future plans.

Here’s a snap of the young man in action, courtesy of @Hullbhoy on Twitter:

This is amazing. 13 year old Karamoko Dembele is playing for Celtic U20 development squad tonight. pic.twitter.com/kMwaEAeB4f

— ?Andrew (@Hullbhoy) October 3, 2016

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