West Ham and mega-rich Saudi club were ready to pay Amorim release clause before Manchester United move
West Ham and Al-Nassr were prepared to meet Ruben Amorim’s release clause before he joined Manchester United, according to A BOLA.
The Portuguese newspaper reported via their website on 2 November that the Irons showed a willingness to trigger Amorim’s £8.4million release clause at Sporting CP during their talks in April.
Al-Nassr, meanwhile, did the same after sacking Luis Castro in September and offered him a contract worth £16.8million-a-year.
However, Amorim turned down both clubs as they were not “sufficiently attractive” for him.
West Ham were ready to trigger new Manchester United boss Ruben Amorim’s release clause
The news that it was Amorim who rejected West Ham comes as a surprise as reports in May suggested it was David Sullivan’s decision to hire Julen Lopetegui instead of the Portuguese against Mark Noble and Tim Steidten’s wishes (talkSPORT).
In a surprising claim, Jacob Steinberg revealed last week that the Hammers were cautioned the 39-year-old was using them (X).
Amorim notably travelled to London for talks with the Irons towards the end of last season in April (The Athletic) and, at that point, it seemed like a deal could be on the cards.
The coach received a lot of criticism back home for flying to England while Sporting’s season was still underway.
However, in England, it appeared to be a sign of his desire to take the reins at the London Stadium.
It was not to be anyway, and the Hammers went on to rope in Lopetegui, whose start as their head coach has left much to be desired.
With the team sitting fourteenth in the table after 10 games, there are increasing shouts for the Spaniard to be sacked.
In other West Ham news, Lucas Paqueta could leave the club in a “shock” swap deal for a 23-year-old striker.
For more West Ham news, follow us on Facebook or join our brand new WhatsApp channel for instant updates to be sent straight to your phone.