West Ham United take action concerning Middlesbrough FC star ahead of January | OneFootball

West Ham United are reportedly scouting Emmanuel Latte Lath ahead of a potential January switch

West Ham United are reportedly running the rule over Emmanuel Latte Lath, who was watched by club scouts as he netted a hat-trick in Middlesbrough's 6-2 demolition of Oxford United on Saturday afternoon.

This development comes according to a recent report from Sky Sports Italia journalist Gianluca Di Marzio, who has revealed that the Hammers had a scout in attendance at the Kassam Stadium over the weekend.

Middlesbrough claimed their third consecutive league victory by putting the U's to the sword in yet another empathic, goal-laden attacking display. Having gone behind to a Gregory Leigh strike after 24 minutes, Boro fought back admirably on the road and eventually ran out 6-2 victors, with Finn Azaz and Tommy Conway accompanying Latte Lath on the scoresheet.

Michael Carrick's side have now risen up to 5th place in the Championship, helped by resounding 4-1 and 5-1 victories over QPR and Luton Town respectively before November's international break. Both Middlesbrough and Latte Lath have enjoyed a drastic upturn in fortunes as of late, with the Ivorian frontman looking back to his very best following a difficult start to the 2024/25 campaign.

According to reports, Latte Lath was the subject of a £20 million deadline-day offer from newly-promoted Ipswich Town on deadline day, which Boro rejected. The 25-year-old endured a complicated start amid the final-day drama and scored just once in his first ten matches of the season, even temporarily losing his place behind Conway before returning to the starting line-up.

Carrick's return of faith has been duly rewarded, with Latte Lath finding the back of the net on five occasions in Boro's last three fixtures.

West Ham United are keeping tabs on Middlesbrough's Emmanuel Latte Lath

Di Marzio's report reveals that West Ham had a scout monitoring closely in Oxford on Saturday afternoon. They will undoubtedly have been impressed with what they saw, of course, and it would come as no real surprise if West Ham continued sending scouts out to watch Latte Lath in the coming weeks.

The report states that the scout was watching ahead of the January transfer window, where the Hammers could test Boro's resolve with an official bid for the red-hot frontman. For now at least, West Ham's interest appears to be at a preliminary stage but will surely amplify if Latte Lath continues his electric form infront of goal.

Emmanuel Latte Lath will be hard to prize away from Middlesbrough in January

While West Ham and other potentially-interested parties will be able to offer the lure of top-flight football, that doesn't necessarily mean prizing Latte Lath away from Teesside represents a simple task.

Middlesbrough are now in genuine contention for promotion and adopt a hardball stance when it comes to interest in their prized assets, of which Latte Lath is one, so Carrick isn't really going to be interested in entertaining offers. As aforementioned, Boro rejected £20 million from Ipswich in the summer and Latte Lath's stock is arguably even higher now.

Moreover, earlier this month, Latte Lath's agent Matthias Veneroso explained to TeessideLive: "Right now, all Emmanuel is focused on is Middlesbrough and showing everyone he can score goals again. The last games showed his attitude, mentality, and feeling towards the club. He has a great feeling with the fans and his team-mates.

"Everything is okay and now his mind is 100 per cent focused on Middlesbrough - that’s always been the case, but of course, there was a time where there was a lot going on in his head. He is human and it’s normal. The player is happy and, we hope, coming back to his level. He’s scoring goals, and he’s helping the team.

"We will not be pushing for anything or forcing anyone [in January]. Emmanuel is just focused on Middlesbrough and helping the team achieve their goals. We know football - he is a striker and if he scores more goals, it could be that he is interesting for clubs everywhere. But this is not something that we are predicting and we won’t push for.

"As was the case in the summer, everything will be in line with the club and we will find solutions for anything that might come up with the club that works out for the best of the club. The goal at the beginning of the season for the club was to fight to go up to the Premier League and this remains a possibility right now.

"That is the only focus for everyone right now. In this moment, I think the club really want to be promoted and really want to keep all the best players that they have."

Veneroso's comments are evidently reflected in Latte Lath's rediscovered goalscoring touch and the revelation that he's not pining for the January exit door is a huge boost to Middlesbrough, who have a strong chance at retaining him until the end of the season at the very least.

Promotion is a real possibility this term and Latte Lath is capable of leading them back to the promised land, so it does feel unlikely that either party is going to be looking to part ways.