West Ham lodge €18m bid for Ireland star Troy Parrott

Why the Troy Parrott bid may fall short

The Championship club move to make the Dubliner their prime attacking target before the transfer window closes.

The offer is some way short of the roughly €30million AZ Alkmaar are believed to want for a player who was one of the highest scorers in European football last season.

As Balls.ie reported, West Ham are willing to break the current Championship transfer record of £17.5million to get a deal done, and last week were said to be prepared to go as high as £30million.

Porto are viewed as their main competitor for his signature.

A move to the second tier would be a gamble for Parrott, who endured mixed loan spells at Millwall, MK Dons and Preston North End earlier in his career.

West Ham are strong favourites for promotion, but a switch to the Championship would divide opinion among Irish supporters, many of whom would prefer to see him join a big continental club.

Like Ireland team-mate Evan Ferguson, Parrott's next move will be watched closely at home.

A decision is expected in the coming days as the window ticks down.