A deal for West Ham United striker Gianluca Scamacca is within reach for Inter Milan, though Lille’s Jonathan David is also a “dream target.”

This according to today’s print edition of Milan-based newspaper Gazzetta dello Sport, via FCInterNews, who report that the Nerazzurri have overtaken Roma in the race for Scamacca, but are still also keeping a couple other striker targets in mind.

Yesterday Inter held a very significant meeting with West Ham regarding Scamacca.

The Nerazzurri put forward an offer for the 24-year-old worth around €25 million including add-ons.

Whilst this was not high enough for the Hammers to accept, it was not miles off of their expectations.

Scamacca, who cost around €40 million for West Ham to sign from Sassuolo last summer, is amortized in the Londoners’ balance sheet at around €30 million. Therefore, that is around the amount the Hammers would aim to recoup.

As such, there is clearly a basis for negotiations between the clubs.

If Inter improve their offer a reasonable amount, they can certainly convince West Ham.

This means that the Nerazzurri have now taken a decisive step ahead of Roma in the race for Scamacca’s signature. The Giallorossi are only capable of offering West Ham an initial loan deal.

Inter Make Significant Progress For Scamacca – But Haven’t Stopped Thinking About Balogun

The Gazzetta note that Inter want to resolve their search for a striker in due time.

It’s August, and the Nerazzurri have no intention of letting it get to late in the month without giving Simone Inzaghi another striker.

And having a deal for Scamacca within reach is certainly a major development in that respect.

The Gazzetta report that Inter would be ready to invest around €30 million in signing the Italian international. They had been ready to spend even more than that signing Romelu Lukaku for a straight cash fee.

However, the newspaper also note that Inter are still not excluding other targets.

There’s still Folarin Balogun, for one.

The Nerazzurri directors are highly impressed by the 22-year-old US international’s talents based on his loan season at Reims.

However, there would be two obstacles to Inter moving for Balogun.

The first is the price tag. Arsenal are ready to hold out for a minimum of €40 million for the American.

Then, there is the fact that Balogun isn’t quite the profile of striker that Inter coach Inzaghi wants. The coach is aiming for a more traditional Number Nine with physical strength and holdup play.

Jonathan David A “Dream” Target For Inter

The other target that the Gazzetta report Inter still have on their radar is Lille and Canada striker Jonathan David.

More than Balogun, David would tick the stylistic boxes that Inzaghi wants in a striker.

But the price tag for the 23-year-old will likely be even higher than that for Balogun. Lille are likely to demand no less than €50 million for their star man.

This may not be entirely out of reach for Inter.

But it would require more of an investment than they’d been considering making in a striker this summer. A rethink in overall strategy would be required.

Moreover, the Nerazzurri are wary of a bidding war emerging for David’s signature.

Tottenham Hotspur in particular have shown interest in signing the Canadian.

Therefore, David is a “dream” target who, if the stars were align perfectly, Inter would be keen to go after.

But Scamacca is no mere “dream” on the other hand – if the Nerazzurri want to, they can can get a deal for the Azzurri star done relatively quickly.