West Ham 'contact' European club for £20.2m 'dominant' Declan Rice replacement
West Ham are being linked with a move for a midfielder who can anchor down the middle of the pitch.
West Ham are said to be considering a move for a midfielder as they prepare for a key summer. The Hammers endured a hugely disappointing season of last, struggling to muster up any sort of consistency under Julen Lopetegui or Graham Potter.
The Iron wanted to get real momentum behind them going into next season, but instead, Potter will go into next season without the full confidence of the fans - and indeed the board. Potter will get a fair chance with a squad he deems his own, but he will be on shaky ground from the start given the struggles of the season just gone.
Recruitment is going to be key for Potter, and we have already seen a number of names linked. One of the latest is Club Brugge midfielder Raphael Onyedika, who has also been linked with a move to AC Milan this summer having impressed in Belgium.
According to Africa Foot, Club Brugge want €24 million - that’s around £20.2million - for the midfielder, and it’s reported that West Ham have already made contact over a possible deal. The 24-year-old midfielder is valued at £16.8million by Transfermarkt, but he is trending upwards, hence the building interest in his services.
The defensive midfielder made 52 appearances across all competitions this season, and he is a nine-time Nigeria international. According to the report, a source within CAA Stellar agency, who represent the player, has said: “West Ham made contact with Club Bruges on Tuesday and are ready to begin talks.
“[Club Brugge] are willing to sell for the right price. AC Milan were the first to approach, but are unlikely to match the 24 million euro valuation. Personal terms with Raphael should not be an issue, as the player is keen to play in the Premier League.”
Whether that source is reliable or not is unclear, but the Hammers do need to properly replace Declan Rice having arguably failed to do so in the last couple of seasons, and Onyedika is seen as a dominant holding midfielder who has the physicality needed to compete in the Premier League.
Potter eyes Brighton repeat
Potter wants to repeat the success of the recruitment done during his time at Brighton with West Ham. He said in April: “At Brighton, we left the club fourth on the table, with, in my opinion, the best pound-for-pound squad in the Premier League. If we can achieve the same at West Ham, we can be whatever you want to say. So you've got a winning team with value on the pitch.
“If you can create that, then I'm happy. Three years' time, if we can do that together then that's fantastic. An equivalent of Caicedo, an equivalent of Mac Allister, an equivalent of [Leandro] Trossard, an equivalent of [Robert] Sanchez, an equivalent of [Lewis] Dunk, an equivalent of [Pascal] Gross, at West Ham — that's £200m of sales — [Yves] Bissouma, Ben White, Marc Cucurella, Pervis Estupinan, those players. If you can win and sell players then you should be happy with that performance. No?”
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