Ben Johnson makes contract demands in new twist at West Ham United, £35,000-a-week deal on the table
West Ham United are ready to offer defender Ben Johnson a new contract of around £35k-a-week to remain at the London Stadium, according to Claret & Hugh.
The reliable Hammers journalists, share (8 November) that the defender and his agents have made demands of around £60,000-a-week which the Irons are unwilling to match given his “fringe” status at the club.
West Ham would be willing to offer £35k-a-week plus £25k for each match appearance which seems fair for a player who won’t be playing every week and hasn’t performed to his best at the club for 18 months.
This news comes as a surprise new twist in Johnson’s future at the clubs after reports suggested he could be made available for exit in the January transfer window (Claret and Hugh, 18 October).
Bizarre
This latest development regarding Johnson all seems a bit bizarre and given his limited minutes at the London Stadium, it’s strange that West Ham United would be willing to hand him a new deal.
Certainly, Johnson has no right to be making such lofty contract demands given he’s only started one game for the club all season and hasn’t started a Premier League game since last season.
Everton are understood to be keen on a potential move, with Southampton and even Luton named as possible destinations moving forward and should any of those clubs guarantee first-team minutes, Johnson will jump at the chance after this new development.
It remains to be seen whether the young defender would be willing to part with such a £35k-a-week figure and may well look elsewhere to see if any club can match those lofty demands he and his agents have made, but even that looks incredibly unlikely.
Emerson and Vladimir Coufal have been concrete options for Moyes over the past year, and he hasn’t been able to shift them aside to cement his own spot in the side, making just 17 appearances last season and being restricted to the one this time around.
At the age of 23, Johnson needs to be playing regularly to get his career back on track and it’s why a January exit will be the best solution for all parties.
In other West Ham news, the Irons have already moved to secure a new midfield transfer.