West Ham secure England star for £3m less than initial demand from Premier League rivals

The January transfer window saw West Ham sign Kalvin Phillips for £3 million on a loan fee for the second half of the 2023/24 season. According to reports from Football Insider, however, the Manchester City defender was initially put on the market for £6 million but the Citizens failed to find any clubs willing to pay that much for a six-month spell.

It is also reported that not only did the Hammers negotiate a deal worth £3m less than what City had envisaged, but the total is also £4.5 million less than what the Mancunian club had asked for last summer. The Hammers are, however, paying the midfielder's full salary while he enjoys his stay at London Stadium which is reported to be £140,000-a-week.

Football Insider first revealed in mid-December that Pep Guardiola's side demanded £7.5 million last summer for the ex-Leeds United star to let him go on loan for the whole season and now it's reported that David Moyes has been told he will have to pay £40 million if he wishes to make Phillips' loan permanent in the summer.

28-year-old Phillips was handed his first debut in his first start for West Ham on 1 February when the London Stadium club drew 1-1 with Bournemouth. He was then dropped to the bench for their next league game as they lost 3-0 to Manchester United but made an appearance from the bench.

The defensive midfielder moved to City in 2022 for a fee of £42 million plus add-ons following an eight year stay with the Leeds senior squad where he made over 200 league appearances for the side. Phillips has also enjoyed 31 international fixtures for England and his move to West Ham has been fuelled with the intention of getting into Gareth Southgate's Euros 2024 squad this summer.

The Hammers are now seventh in the table following their recent defeat and are next in action against Arsenal at the London Stadium on Sunday (11 February).