OPINION
West Ham United look set to sell one of their central midfield options in the final days of the summer window, with both Pedro Obiang and Cheikhou Kouyate linked with exits.
Obiang has been on the radar of former club Sampdoria, while Kouyate has been linked to Premier League rivals Crystal Palace and Portuguese champions Porto.
The Senegal international had looked likely to join the Eagles, but as reported by the Guardian, that £11million deal has now stalled due to his high wage demands.
The newspaper report that Palace have now cooled their interest in the 28-year-old midfielder, and that is a blow to West Ham boss Manuel Pellegrini, who is said to prefer the option of selling Kouyate than Obiang.
The Chilean mastermind will now have to work out a different way of raising funds in the final days before the season, and that must now involve the sale of Obiang to Sampdoria.
The 26-year-old Spaniard has been linked heavily with a move back to Serie A, and while Pellegrini is said to not want to lose him, an exit would not be a huge blow for the Hammers.
The club would be receiving a similar fee for Obiang than they would have for Kouyate, and they would also be retaining a player who has been consistently good for the club since his arrival in 2014.
Pellegrini likely wants to retain Obiang as he is the slightly more agile and mobile player, but the likelihood is that neither player would start in his preferred midfield pairing anyway.
The club are obviously looking to rake in some income before deadline day after splashing out over £80million so far, while also hunting for a new striker in the process.
Pellegrini must now push Obiang towards an exit after this delay so the club can push on with their final piece of business and prepare for the new season as thoroughly as possible.
