West Ham alerted to Sam Johnstone availability after row with manager – report
West Ham may have been alerted to the availability of Sam Johnstone before the transfer deadline closes on Monday, according to The Mirror.
Johnstone has entered the final six months of his contract at Hawthorns but had been expected to see out the season with West Brom until a furious row with manager Valerien Ismael put his future into doubt.
The England goalkeeper was dropped from the squad entirely after reacting badly to news he wouldn’t be immediately reinstated to the team after serving a suspension.
Now The Mirror are reporting that both West Ham and Southampton are among the clubs potentially alerted to the situation and suggest a deal could happen before Monday’s deadline.
West Ham have been linked with a move for Johnstone this month, with Alphonse Areola’s loan unlikely to be extended beyond the summer.
Easy deal
On paper, this should be a relatively easy deal for West Ham to get over the line if they want to.
Johnstone wants out of the Hawthorns, the manager is now unlikely to pick him again any time soon, and with less than six months to run on his contract this is the last chance West Brom have of getting any cash for him.
For David Moyes, it represents a chance for a bargain deal in a position that they will likely need to address in the summer anyway. This is a player who was described as ‘unreal‘ by Paddy Kenny earlier this season.
Lukasz Fabianski is the undisputed number one right now, but at 36-years-old he won’t be around forever and despite signing a new one-year deal would be under real pressure if Johnstone arrived.
There is always the possibility that the Hammers look to agree a pre-contract, but it’s certainly one to keep an eye on between now and 11pm on Monday.
In other West Ham news, ‘That will continue’ – Stuart Pearce: West Ham want to sign ‘top level’ player in Jan