(Credit: Imago/ I Had Trials Once podcast on YouTube)

Jacob Raw

Tue 26 May 2026 6:40, UK

Ex-West Ham United star Matt Jarvis wonders whether David Sullivan will push for sales more than players requesting to leave this summer.

The Hammers had their relegation confirmed on Sunday despite victory against Leeds United, as Championship football will come to the London Stadium next season.

Nuno Espirito Santo looks unlikely to keep his job, with Scott Parker and Gary O’Neill two candidates to take over from the Portuguese manager.

The Guardian has already suggested that the Hammers will need to raise around £100million this summer, with losses of £104.2m in their most recent accounts one of the reasons why.

However, West Ham will look to get promoted back to the Premier League at the first time of asking, which makes Jarvis wonder how much change will happen this summer window.

Matt Jarvis says West Ham can’t afford to sell everyone

Jarrod Bowen’s future is uncertain, while others like Crysencio Summerville and Mateus Fernandes will most likely leave the club to help raise funds close to the reported £100m figure that will be needed.

Sullivan will have major work to do regardless, as several players will want to leave, but as Jarvis highlights, not everyone can be let go.

While speaking on Sky Sports this Monday, former Hammers player Jarvis gave his thoughts on why West Ham will have a more difficult job to do than people think this summer.

Jarvis said: “It depends on whether the club are going to try and get players to leave or if it’s the other way around and players want to leave. It’s not going to be as easy as people think.

“It’s more about getting the right price for some of these players. Fernandes has been outstanding. Summerville’s been a shining light. If you want to have a good push next season, you can’t sell everyone.”

There’s already been a report to say that Taty Castellanos has no interest in playing in the Championship and will be available for a “bargain” price this summer.

It would be no surprise to see many other players have the same stance, with Konstantinos Mavropanos also destined to leave E20.

These are players West Ham could realistically keep

Tomas Soucek and Freddie Potts could be West Ham’s midfield pivot for the Championship, with another Rush Green product in Ollie Scarles a possible left-back option.

Callum Wilson may want to stay, while it would be hard to see who would be in for Adama Traore.

List of potential West Ham starters next summer (opinion):

• Tomas Soucek
• Freddie Potts
• Ollie Scarles
• Mads Hermansen
• Callum Wilson
• Adama Traore
• Kyle Walker-Peters
• Pablo

The same could be said for Mads Hermansen, who has suffered back-to-back Premier League relegations and is in the middle of not being that good in the top flight but being too good for the Championship.

It may largely depend on which manager comes in if Nuno is sacked, on whether the new boss can lure the top players to stay at the London Stadium for one easy promotion push.