West Ham United transfer news as Joao Palhinha will now cost £60m
Fulham are said to be demanding £60m to sanction the sale of West Ham target Joao Palhinha, as reported by the Daily Mirror.
The Portuguese midfielder only arrived in the Premier League last year to play under his compatriot Marco Silva, at Craven Cottage.
He is said to be a potential replacement for Declan Rice at the London Stadium, with the Hammers’ skipper widely expected to leave the club in the coming weeks.
The Mirror provided the latest on the potential transfer of the player, who impressed in his debut season in England.
“Fulham are demanding a whopping £60million from Premier League suitors interested in Joao Palhinha,” it said.
“He was one of the signings of the season and is attracting interest from West Ham as a potential replacement for Declan Rice, who is wanted by Arsenal. Palhinha only joined Fulham on a five-year deal from Sporting Lisbon last summer but could now potentially move on if anyone meets his huge price tag.”
Hands off
£60m, wow.
That is a warning to other clubs to pay up, or move along, so it will be interesting to see what happens next with this one.
Such a fee would be more than three times what the West London club paid for Palhinha just 12 months ago and West Ham are likely to baulk at such a suggestion.
The other issue is that clubs know the Hammers will have money to burn after the impending sale of Rice. Whilst that is true in relative terms, they will need to bring in two or three additions to fill the huge void that will be left by the departure of the England midfielder.
West Ham must use the proceeds wisely and not just burn through it, quickly.
The chances of half or more of the Rice money being spent on the Fulham man are slim, to say the least. It could depend on what the player wants to do if he sees the short move across London as being beneficial to his career.
He is one of many names who will be linked in the coming weeks as transfer developments ramp up for the Hammers.