Leeds United hold a 15% sell-on clause in Charlie Cresswell’s Toulouse contract, and that could be triggered if West Ham pursue a move after recent interest.
The Whites have addressed their centre-back options early this summer with four options now on the books after the arrivals of Jaka Bijol and Sebastiaan Bornauw, while Max Wöber looks set to leave for the Bundesliga.
It comes a year on from Leeds making the tough decision to cash in on one of their own, selling Charlie Cresswell to Toulouse for a £3.8million fee.
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Charlie Cresswell now targeted by West Ham as Leeds United await 15% sell-on windfall
Leeds’ agreement to let Cresswell leave for the southern France came with a sell-on clause included, meaning the club are entitled to 15% of any profit made by the Ligue 1 club on top of the initial fee.
How much they sell him for remains to be seen, but reports have previously linked with centre-back with a Serie A transfer to the tune of €20million (around £17million) – which would net Leeds around £2million thanks to their clause.
(REUTERS/Radovan Stoklasa)
Now, West Ham insider ExWHUEmployee has shared that the Irons are interested in signing Cresswell, four years on from the centre-back making his Premier League debut against them:
“West Ham seriously interested, with a move for the player a real possibility. Cresswell is also a homegrown player, which is also attractive to the club.”
Cresswell’s stock has likely risen significantly after a standout tournament with England U21s, collecting his second winners’ medal in the U21 European Championships, but this time being an integral presence at the back.
Leeds United could come to regret Charlie Cresswell sale, but he needs to prove it first
Leeds didn’t have much of a choice with Cresswell when he was sold: we needed to balance out PSR, he was never going to get a look in over Joe Rodon or Pascal Struijk, and clearly kicked up a fuss at the pecking order and tarnished his relationship with Daniel Farke as a result.
The fee, having had a good loan at Millwall, wasn’t as high as many would have expected, but there was no guarantee he’d have stuck the landing in France.
Either way, he’s potentially heading back to England with a Premier League move that could make Leeds look very foolish.
Or, he could be making that move far too soon and not be a good signing at all for West Ham in the short-term, a side that are already going to be looking over their shoulders.
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