West Ham are facing a steep bill to replace Declan Rice with Ajax’s Edson Alvarez as the Dutch side are demanding £45million, The Guardian reports.
The Hammers star is set to leave, with Arsenal currently favourites but reportedly £10million short of the £100million minimum threshold, so David Moyes is targeting the Mexican, as well as Southampton’s James Ward-Prowse, in his place.
The Saints captain “will leave” and the Scot is eyeing a move for him and Alvarez this summer as Rice departs, with Fulham’s Joao Palhinha a reserve choice.
The Hammers reportedly hoped that Ajax would settle for a lower price after missing out on Champions League football, but face competition from Borussia Dortmund who are set to have a huge windfall to spend of their own after agreeing to sell Jude Bellingham to Real Madrid.
The German side struck a deal with the Spanish giants for the England star that could reach €133million [£113.7million] with add-ons, which means West Have risk missing out on Alvarez to the Bundesliga.
Palhinha is seen as a back-up option if the Ajax man is missed out, but the Cottager will himself “not be cheap” according to Jacob Steinberg.
Complicated
The amount of money flying about in the European football market for midfielders is huge, and with so many clubs trading players in the very same position there is competition for virtually every one.
Even if Rice had stayed at the London Stadium the Irons would probably have needed to bring in a top level partner, with Tomas Soucek’s form inconsistent and Moyes apparently unsold on Flynn Downes.
Banking a huge sum for the captain is only worthwhile if it is wisely spent as a result, and an Alvarez-Ward-Prowse combination sounds like a decent option.
The set-piece specialist from St. Mary’s should be available after the Saints were relegated, but even so he will hardly be a bargain on his own.
And the Bellingham move looks to have handed Ajax the perfect reason to holdstick at their asking price if Dortmund are in the race and also backed by a newly-inflated bank balance.
Any club who find themselves with the man who appears to be the top replacement choice for the sides who have just sold Bellingham and Rice for huge sums is going to see no reason to discount their price, so if West Ham want Alvarez, 25, they might have to shell out what is being asked for.
