Everton & West Ham Continue to Scout Free-Scoring Porto Ace As Summer Preparations Ramp Up

Everton and West Ham United are continuing to monitor Porto striker Moussa Marega ahead of a potential summer swoop, with both sides sending scouts to watch the

Everton and West Ham United are continuing to monitor Porto striker Moussa Marega ahead of a potential summer swoop, with both sides sending scouts to watch the 27-year-old, according to reports. 

The French-born talisman has been a critical influence in his side's Primeira Liga title push, with Azuis e brancos's position two points ahead of Benfica primarily down to the frontman's 21 goals and four assists in 26 showings. 

Both the Hammers and the Toffees have struggled to find a reliable talisman this season, with David Moyes relying on Marko Arnautovic despite the Austrian being more suited to an attacking midfield role and Sam Allardyce struggling to get the best out of January signing Cenk Tosun. 

However, according to Portuguese newspaper A Bola, as quoted by SportWitness, the pairing have been impressed with what they have seen from Marega after sending their respective talent spotters to assess the Mali international. 

The player's agent, Aziz Ben Aissa has spoken previously surrounding interest from English clubs, stating: “It is true that there are early contacts with several English clubs, among them Everton, but no decision has been made. And it will only be with the natural knowledge and consent of FC Porto. Anything else that comes after this will be speculation."

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However, whether either side will launch a bid remains to be seen, with Marega's €40m release clause likely to be the only figure the Portuguese outfit are willing to accept. 

Although neither team have been able to find reliability in the goalscoring department this term, the Primeira Liga title-bound attacker failing to score in any of his side's Champions League showings may be a cause for concern when stepping up against Premier League opposition.