West Ham United: Pundit shares ‘huge’ Sunderland transfer admission on ‘fantastic’ Jack Clarke
It will take a “huge offer” for Sunderland to consider selling Jack Clarke following the interest from West Ham in signing him, according to Carlton Palmer.
Speaking to Football League World on Friday (12 January), the pundit said it will take more than £20million for the Black Cats to allow the 23-year-old to leave and that a move probably won’t take place until the summer.
He believes it’s “inevitable” that the English winger, who had a “fantastic” season last year, will leave the Stadium of Light for a Premier League club despite interest from other Championship sides in signing him this month.
“Southampton and Leicester have joined the race to sign Sunderland’s Jack Clarke,” said Palmer. “The 23-year-old had a fantastic 22/23 season, and he’s playing even better in this current campaign. The talented winger has scored 12 goals so far, Sunderland’s leading goalscorer.
“If Sunderland were to sell in January it would take a bid in excess of £20million, which Southampton and Leicester would be capable of paying. But it just would not make sense for Jack to move to another Championship club in January when the likes of West Ham, Burnley, Crystal Palace, Wolves, Everton and Bournemouth are all keen to acquire his services.
“I think it’s inevitable that Jack will move on from Sunderland to a Premier League club, but I think this is more than likely to happen in the summer.
“Jack has two-and-a-half years left on his contract, Sunderland are in the driving seat and Jack is happy and playing well. So the only thing that changes is a huge offer received by Sunderland.”
Need immediate reinforcements
It was clear that West Ham needed to bring in at least one new attacker heading into the January transfer window, but it now looks imperative that they get someone through the door.
With Jarrod Bowen, Lucas Paqueta and Michail Antonio all set to be sidelined for the next few weeks and Mohammed Kudus joining the Ghana squad for the Africa Cup of Nations, the Hammers’ options have been decimated.
Clarke would go some way towards easing those problems after he’s been a standout player for Sunderland over the past couple of seasons, having scored 12 goals in 26 Championship appearances during this campaign.
But whether or not the Hammers have the money in the bank to splash out more than £20million on the former Tottenham winger this month is unknown.
As we look to compete on three fronts in the second half of the season, though, some more strength in depth is certainly needed if we want to ensure this is another successful campaign.
In other West Ham news, Declan Rice has sent a message after a Hammers transfer announcement has been made.