West Ham ‘Not Worried’ About £175m Duo Leaving This Summer
West Ham United duo Edson Alvarez and Mohammed Kudus are being linked with moves away from the London Stadium, but the capital club are confident the pair are not going to be leaving this summer.
Although reports suggest that the Hammers are being plunged into a fight to hold onto two of their best players, GMS sources say they will show calmness over the coming weeks as there is currently little concern about them departing.
The Hammers are one of the few Premier League teams to have already made a summer signing, as they secured the £25million signing of Luis Guilherme from Brazilian side Palmeiras.
New boss Julen Lopetegui is hoping for further additions across the pitch, with particular issues to tend to in defence and attack.
Hammers Have No Intention of Selling Kudus and Alvarez
East Londoners prepared to price duo out of move
Although West Ham have set their sights on drafting in further reinforcements, there has been rising doubt about just how much money they have to spend in the summer window, and now the club are facing a new challenge, as Kudus is linked with a move to Saudi Arabian side Al-Ittihad and Alvarez is touted for a switch to Manchester United.
We have seen before how the Hammers value their star players, as they held out for £105million last year when Arsenal and Manchester City fought to sign Declan Rice.
We would likely see a similar pricing method here, with sources indicating that valuations on both Kudus and Alvarez would be sky-high in order to make sure the club could replace them. There is almost no chance that the interested parties being linked would be willing to pay up for the proposed moves. Additionally, there has been no intention to sell either player, as both are seen as pivotal players in the way Lopetegui would like to build next season.
Top ranking officials at West Ham are keen to make sure their boss is not rattled before the new season begins, knowing he went through issues at Wolverhampton Wanderers when he could not properly build his squad, and ended up leaving.
Kudus is believed to have an £85million clause that kicks in next summer – but insiders have indicated to GIVEMESPORT that the player himself would have very little interest in moving to Saudi Arabia anyway.
If he leaves and has no intention of making that sort of switch, elite Champions League clubs will be more in his way of thinking when it comes to the next step.
It is worth remembering that Saudi clubs rarely pay such huge sums as transfer fees anyway, preferring to pay a player significant amounts directly as wages.
GIVEMESPORT Key Statistic: Mohammed Kudus registered 14 dribbles during West Ham United’s 5-0 defeat at Chelsea in May, which was his highest tally in a single Premier League appearance throughout the 2023/24 campaign
Man United Will Not Meet Demands for Alvarez
Mexico international has price tag in region of £90m
Alvarez, who joined West Ham for £35.4million from Ajax last year, is a surprise target for Manchester United as he has not been brought up as an option before. But he formerly played under Erik ten Hag at Ajax and, at a time when the Red Devils are on the lookout for a central midfielder, he would make some sense.
A fee estimation for Alvarez sits at £90million right now – which is way beyond the number Manchester United would be looking to spend on a player in that position this summer.
Meanwhile, the Hammers are signing Wes Foderingham on a two-year deal as their third-choice goalkeeper and, as part of the changes in that area, they are also expected to agree a deal for Nathan Trott to leave to join FC Copenhagen.
