West Ham United have a decision to make over the future of a Scotland internationalist
Rangers and Celtic have reportedly joined in the transfer race for Scotland international Andy Irving - with clubs in Germany and Italy also interested.
It had been claimed that the Hoops were monitoring the 25-year-old midfielder and had an offer of an initial £1.75milllion plus add-ons knocked by his parent club West Ham, where is remains on the fringes of the first-team squad.
Now, according to The Scotsman, Rangers are also taking a look at the former Hearts star with a view to brining him to the other side of Glasgow.
Irvine, who made 11 senior appearances for the Hammers last season, is understood to be hungry to gain more regular football at the top level to enhance his prospects of featuring for the national team at next summer’s World Cup.
Bundesliga sides Cologne, Borussia Monchengladbach and Stuttgart have also made contact with the English Premier League club to enquire about the player’s potential availability, while Austrian champions Sturm Graz have made an approach to try and tempt Irvine back to the country where he thrived previously at Austria Klagenfurt before heading to the London Stadium.
There is also believed to be additional interest from Serie A teams, where fellow Scots like Lewis Ferguson, Scott McTominay, Billy Gilmour, Ché Adams and Aaron Hickey have all flourished in recent seasons.
West Ham will make a decision on Irving’s future before the summer transfer window closes on 1 September. He enjoyed a strong pre-season after making his international debut for Steve Clarke’s side in June’s friendly win against minnows Liechtenstein.
Both Rangers and Celtic intend on strengthening their respective squads before the end of the month and are keen to push through a deal. As a fluent German speaker, however, the technically gifted midfield maestro is also deemed an attractive proposition for Bundesliga sides in Germany and Austria.
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Edinburgh-born Irving left boyhood club Hearts in 2021 to sign for Türkgücü Munich in the German third tier. They went bust after 12 months due to financial difficulties and he subsequently moved on to Klagenfurt, which turned out to be a life-changing move.
After netting 14 goals and 12 assists in Austria’s top division, he made the permanent switch to England last summer. He was sold to West Ham on transfer deadline day in September 2023 but remained on loan at Klagenfurt as part of a newly-formed club link-up.
Premier League side to make Andy Irving future call
Graham Potter replaced Julen Lopetegui as West Ham boss in January. The English is preparing for his first full season in charge, starting with Saturday’s trip to newly-promoted Sunderland on the opening day of the Premier League campaign.
Irving has featured for West Ham in pre-season, scoring in the friendly win over Swiss club Grasshoppers and also got some game time during their pre-season trip to the USA.
He is entering the final year of his contract and is not short of options should West Ham be willing to let him leave this summer, Final discussions on that subject will determine Irving’s future.
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