Chelsea have reportedly given West Ham the option to choose between two stars and an impasse over another deal could have a big domino effect on the Mohammed Kudus situation.
The first mini summer transfer window deadline has now passed and Chelsea’s activity is intrinsically linked with West Ham’s.
Safeguarding against a future PSR breach means the Hammers have no money to spend until sales are made this summer.
Hardly ideal for Graham Potter given the huge rebuild needed at West Ham as he has everything to prove in his first job back in football after being sacked by Chelsea.
It’s a case of how the other half lives when comparing the Blues and the Irons.
Money is no object at Stamford Bridge – as Potter witnessed during his brief spell.
Now at West Ham, Potter has the opposite problem – there is no money without sales.
Chelsea have been mulling signing Kudus from West Ham
Chelsea have already flexed their financial muscle in the first 10 days of an extended summer transfer window.
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Liam Delap, a player West Ham were linked with all season, has arrived as Chelsea’s new number one striker.
West Ham are desperate to make some sales so they can start signing players themselves.
The club are banking on Mohammed Kudus bringing in the most significant funds.
West Ham have revealed three Premier League clubs want Kudus – one of those being confirmed as Chelsea.
The Hammers held talks with Chelsea over a possible deal for Kudus.
Photo by Charlotte Wilson/Offside/Offside via Getty Images
Photo by Charlotte Wilson/Offside/Offside via Getty Images
That also saw a number of Blues players discussed as part of the equation. One of those mentioned was goalkeeper Robert Sanchez – who played under Potter at Brighton – as West Ham look for a new stopper following the departure of Lukasz Fabianski.
No agreement was reached over Kudus in initial talks and Chelsea went away to mull over whether they wanted to sign the Ghanaian attacker.
At the weekend Sky Sports’ chief reporter Kaveh Solhekol delivered a major update on Chelsea’s stance over signing Kudus from West Ham.
Now developments in west London have changed the landscape.
Chelsea have given West Ham a choice of two stars and a deal impasse gives real hope over a deal for Kudus.
Gittens impasse gives Hammers Kudus deal hope
It is telling that the Blues have been trying to sign Borussia Dortmund’s Jamie Gittens before the first summer window deadline – which passed at 7pm on June 10th.
Dortmund have not accepted Chelsea’s £42m offer but talks have been ongoing and the Germans want nearly €65m (£55m).
That deal is now off until June 16th – when the window reopens until the start of September.
Reports have claimed Chelsea are reluctant to meet Dortmund’s demands.
That gives the Hammers hope Chelsea may decide to turn their attentions back to Kudus – who is a more experienced and proven player than Gittens.
And that will be music to West Ham’s ears because they need cash as soon as possible.
Photo by Chris Brunskill/Fantasista/Getty Images
Photo by Chris Brunskill/Fantasista/Getty Images
Chelsea give West Ham a choice of two stars
In another interesting development, the Blues have now reportedly decided they will sell Sanchez or Djordje Petrovic this summer.
It gives West Ham the choice of one of the two Chelsea stoppers.
But Petrovic would be a much more attractive option for the Hammers given he is still only 25 and was named player of the year on loan at Chelsea’s sister club Strasbourg.
Previously it was expected Chelsea would want to hang on to the Serbian star.
But The Athletic’s Simon Johnson says Chelsea now plan to sell one of Sanchez, Petrovic, Filip Jorgensen or Mike Penders.
With the Blues having tried to sign France goalkeeper Mike Maignan, it’s clear a new number one is wanted at Stamford Bridge.
Jorgensen is expected to remain and that means either Petrovic or Sanchez are the ones most likely to be sold.
Johnson does not make clear how much Chelsea would want from West Ham and other interested parties for either Petrovic or Sanchez.
But the Hammers would not be able to act until Kudus or another player or two are sold.
Whether it will be Chelsea providing those funds remains to be seen as rumours suggest the move for Gittens may be revisited when the window “re-opens” in six days.
Cole Palmer is one player who would like to see Chelsea sign Kudus from West Ham.