West Ham are seriously concentrating on selling as many as five first-team fringe players this summer, according to Claret and Hugh.
The online outlet claim that the club wants deals concluded for Reece Oxford, Sam Byram, Jordan Hugill, Pedro Obiang, and Martin Samuelsen.
Claret and Hugh report that a suggested move to Augsburg has become ‘dead in the water’ for Oxford due to the player’s demands, including a relegation clause, with the Telegraph now reporting that a move to West Brom or Middlesbrough is more likely.
With fringe players set to leave the club, Manuel Pellegrini is set to make his first signing of the window, after Football Insider revealed that the Hammers are on the verge of completing a deal worth £40million for 23-year-old Pablo Fornals.
OPINION
This was an inevitability for the Hammers’ fringe players, with the need for a clearout at the London Stadium becoming more likely every season. Players such as Byram and Hugill certainly have no future at West Ham after both failing to succeed in their respective Championship loans. Some of these players can be valuable to the club, with Reece Oxford nearly being sold for £8million to Augsburg before the collapse, with that money possibly being able to be spent on new signings. The Evening Standard did report in May that the Hammers will be forced to sell some players to add to their budget and after the imminent arrival of Pablo Fornals, the time will definitely have come to get rid of some dead wood at the club. Selling their fringe players is much better than loaning them out, with Pellegrini certain to know who he wants to keep or sell by now.
