West Ham manager wants Arsenal trio in cash + players swap deal before He can release Declan Rice for Arsenal
David Moyes wants Arsenal players included in a cash-swap deal to sell West Ham star Declan Rice, with three of his targets named by Football Transfers.
The Hammers are currently in talks with the Gunners over the potential sale of their captain although agreement is some way off, with the board seeking up to £95million in straight cash.
But there is reportedly internal conflict on the cards as the manager wants to be able to bolster his squad immediately with any deal that sees him lose his big-name midfielder, and he has his eye on Emirates trio Reiss Nelson, Folarin Balogun and Albert Sambi-Lokonga.
The “balance of power” in the negotiations to buy Rice is with Arsenal, according to Football Transfers, as they could “pivot” to Brighton’s Moises Caicedo as an alternative.
Nelson has reportedly been offered a third contract to re-sign for Mikel Arteta’s side after rejecting two [Daily Mail, 17 May] so may end up being a free agent either way, but Balogun has impressed with 19 Ligue 1 goals on loan at Stade Reims this season and was advised to look for a move away from Arsenal by club-legend Thierry Henry on CBS Sports (17 May).
Sambi-Lokonga has been linked with a move to Burnley [The Sun, 16 May] where he would link up with former Anderlecht boss Vincent Kompany.
The three named players are obviously talented but clearly not on the same level as Rice, at least currently, and with only one an actual midfielder it might seem slightly underwhelming for Moyes to be eyeing them rather than a larger fee.
That said, he is likely to need a number of new signings after a miserable domestic season, so assuming he is kept on as manager it might knock out multiple areas of need at once.
The Scot’s job has come under major threat throughout this season and Premier League survival is still not actually secured, but qualifying for the Europa Conference League final has boosted his prospects of remaining in charge.
It’s possible that it has also improved the chances that Rice decides to stay, although that is surely less likely, but if the club are ready to overrule the manager and go for the money it could be a sign Moyes’ days are numbered at the London Stadium
Supporters might prefer to see one high-level replacement brought in with a decent chunk of whatever fee Rice goes for, rather than a host of options who may not start every week, although when they would almost uniformly like him to stay the prospect of Arsenal threatening to move on it hardly a worrying one.
But there are many interested parties still so whatever West Ham do they are going to need to ensure they don’t end up with a gaping hole in the midfield that has been able filled for years now, if the skipper is to go.
