West Ham Linked With Zan Vipotnik Move but Swansea Rumours Don’t Add Up

Every few months the transfer rumour cycle throws up a story so flimsy you can almost see the stitching. The latest one linking Zan Vipotnik with a move to West Ham feels exactly like that. A whisper that somehow grew legs, then arms, then a full body before anyone stopped to ask whether any of it made sense. And if you scratch beneath the surface for even a moment, it becomes pretty clear that this one is built on very little.

For a start, there is nothing to suggest that West Ham and Swansea have spoken at all. Not a call, not a message, not even the kind of vague enquiry that sometimes gets dressed up as something more. Reports have already surfaced denying any contact between the clubs, which should tell you everything. If this was a deal edging toward something real, you would expect at least a hint of movement from someone credible. Instead, we have a rumour that seems to be floating in the wind with no anchor to reality. Anyone treating it as a story with substance is choosing fiction over fact.

Now, that doesn’t mean there hasn’t been the usual background noise that comes with any striker in form. It is perfectly possible that someone, somewhere, has had a quiet word with Vipotnik’s representatives. That is how these things start. A bit of testing the water, a bit of gauging interest, nothing formal and nothing that obligates anyone to anything. If that has happened, it would hardly be a shock. Agents and intermediaries live in that grey space where conversations happen without ever becoming official. It is part of the game.

But there is another angle here that feels far more believable. Vipotnik has scored goals this season, real goals, important goals, and people notice that. When a player hits a run of form, especially in the Championship, it is not unusual for their camp to start placing stories in the right places. A rumour here, a suggestion there, a little nudge to see who bites. It is a way of raising a profile, creating a market, or simply reminding clubs that a player is trending upward. These leaks can be deliberate and strategic, and they often have very little to do with the club the player actually plays for. If anything, they are designed to bypass the club entirely.

From Swansea’s point of view, the idea of selling Vipotnik in January feels almost absurd. Unless someone turns up with an offer that is so ridiculous it forces a conversation, the club would have no reason to entertain it. We are not blessed with depth up front. Adam Idah is a willing runner and a useful option, but Vipotnik has been the one putting the ball in the net. In a season where we have spent too much time looking over our shoulder, you simply do not sell your leading scorer unless you have a replacement lined up. And Swansea don’t. That is the blunt truth. Letting him go now would be like removing the roof in the middle of a storm.

Then there is the Premier League angle. This is where the rumour really starts to wobble. Vipotnik has had a good season, no question, but it is half a season. West Ham are in the bottom three and fighting for their lives. Clubs in that position do not gamble on potential. They look for proven quality, players who can walk straight into a Premier League side and make an instant difference. Vipotnik is promising, energetic, and improving, but he is not that level yet. Not close. If West Ham are genuinely searching for a striker to keep them up, there will be options far more suited to that task than a Championship forward still finding his feet in English football. That part of the story feels like the weakest link of all.

Which brings us back to the most likely explanation. This is noise. Targeted noise. A bit of clever positioning from someone in the player’s circle who knows that a well‑timed rumour can spark interest where none existed. Eleven goals is a good return and deserves recognition, but it does not suddenly turn Vipotnik into a Premier League ready forward. What it does do is give his representatives something to work with. And if they can turn that into a bidding war in the summer, or a new contract, or simply a higher profile for their client, then they will consider it a job well done.

For Swansea, the calculation is simple. Vipotnik is worth more on the pitch than in any January sale. He is scoring, he is improving, and he is one of the few reliable attacking outlets we have. Selling him now would weaken the team at a time when stability is everything. Keeping him gives us a fighting chance of climbing the table and building something more coherent for the future.

So yes, the rumour will keep circulating for a bit. That is what rumours do. But unless something dramatic changes, this feels like a story designed to create heat rather than light. Swansea should treat it as background noise and carry on. Vipotnik is far more valuable to us here than he is to anyone else right now, and that is exactly where he should stay.

This article first appeared on JACKARMY.net.