Premier League strugglers have “shown an interest” in signing Manchester United star in January

Manchester United's Lisandro Martinez and Joshua Zirkzee. (Reuters/Andrew Couldridge)

Manchester United’s momentum was abruptly halted on Monday night.

After going five Premier League games unbeaten, Ruben Amorim’s side were expected to extend their run against Everton — especially once Idrissa Gana Gueye was sent off early for bizarrely slapping his own teammate, Michael Keane.

But instead of capitalising, United collapsed. A brilliant solo effort from Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall sealed all three points for the visitors, leaving Old Trafford stunned and Amorim deeply frustrated.

Among those who endured a particularly grim evening was Joshua Zirkzee. Handed his first league start of the season due to injuries to Benjamin Šeško and Matheus Cunha, the Dutchman missed multiple chances, struggled to influence the game, and ultimately looked miles off the pace.

And now, his future may lie away from Old Trafford.

According to David Ornstein, West Ham have “shown an interest” in signing Joshua Zirkzee during the January window.

The striker arrived from Bologna for £36 million but has found life at United extremely difficult. Former Red Devils forward Michael Owen summed up the widespread frustration, describing Zirkzee as “not the right profile” for the club.

Despite arriving with significant expectations, he finished last season with just seven goals in 55 matches and is yet to score this campaign — a run that has seen him fall completely out of Amorim’s plans.

Zirkzee is believed to prefer remaining in the Premier League, though a move back to mainland Europe has not been dismissed if it guarantees consistent minutes.

West Ham’s hopes appear to be strengthening after Ornstein addressed rumours of competition from Italy. Speaking to NBC Sport, he said: “I think West Ham have shown an interest in Zirkzee. Reports say Roma too in Italy but, from what I hear, that’s not necessarily the case.”

While nothing is close yet, the suggestion that Roma are not actively pursuing Zirkzee removes a major potential obstacle for the Hammers — and leaves United with a decision to make next month.

Barnaby Lane is a highly experienced sports writer who has written for The Times, FourFourTwo Magazine, Sports Illustrated, TalkSPORT, and Business Insider.

Over the years, he's had the pleasure of interviewing some of the biggest names in world sport, including Usain Bolt, Rafael Nadal, Christian Pulisic, and more.