West Ham scouts watched on as Benfica defeated Sporting Lisbon 2-1 on Sunday (12 November), according to 90min.

The publication reported on its website on Monday (13 November) that Sporting's Goncalo Inacio and Benfica duo Joao Neves and Antonio Silva were all being watched.

90min added that scouts from several of West Ham's Premier League rivals were in attendance at the Estadio do Dragao.

Along with Arsenal, Liverpool and Manchester United, 90min reported that "Chelsea, Manchester City, Tottenham, Newcastle, Aston Villa and West Ham United are all believed to have had representatives at the game."

The publication added that both Benfica and Sporting are bracing for "significant interest in their top stars in the coming months."

Portuguese influx incoming?

Portugal is already well-represented in the Premier League, with several top-flight stars coming from the European nation.

But they could be joined by many more if English clubs are to get their way in terms of transfers, with trio Neves, Silva and Inacio all capped by Portugal. There will, however, seemingly be a massive battle as to who manages to persuade the talented players to join their club.

Portuguese giants Benfica and Sporting will, of course, be keen to keep hold of their star youngsters, but as shown in the past, they will be sold for the right price.

And that may just rule West Ham out, with the East London club perhaps set to find it difficult to compete with the likes of Manchester City and Chelsea financially.

On the other side of the coin, however, is the issue around regular football, with West Ham perhaps leading in that regard given how minutes would be more readily available at the London Stadium than at the likes of the Etihad or Stamford Bridge.

In other West Ham news, Hammers co-owner David Sullivan has made a David Moyes sack decision at the London Stadium club.

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