C&H Exclusive by Dave Langton
West Ham are braced for at least one bid for Tomas Soucek in the next month.
Sources close to the club have confirmed to ClaretandHugh that there is an expectation of an offer arriving for the Czech Republic international before the end of July.
There is a question mark hanging over the midfielder’s future as there have been no talks over a new contract since the turn of the year, and we understand that there are none scheduled.
One source has confirmed to us that there is a feeling that offers will arrive before the end of July, with a number of clubs interested, including an unnamed Champions League side.
Soucek’s representatives, as we have reported previously, have been talking to clubs to gauge interest in a move after boss David Moyes refused to be drawn into talks over extending his stay. As not to compromise their position, the names of said clubs remain closely guarded.
There remains a possibility that any offer tabled will not meet West Ham’s demands but we understand that the fee, if he does leave, is likely to be in the region of £25m to £30m.
That would represent a small profit on what the Irons paid for him but it remains well below what his valuation would have been last summer.
Regardless, of the reasons why Soucek may leave or not, £25-30M must be a misprint.
£25-30M is roughly the ballpark figure that you generally pay for a punt, NOT a goal-scoring proven Premier League midfield engine and International.
Were these sources drinking at the time 🤔
Agree with The Cat. Why do we always low-ball the value of our sales when other clubs push up their player values to the max?
I agree The Cat, I don’t want to pussy foot around the subject!
Surely 30-35 would be a better figure as we would have to replace him. I am concerned of the growing trend of having A good season and then they think an increased contract should be offered ? Two in succession should be the rule
He shouldn’t be leaving in the first place. I don’t get it at all. He deserves a new contact and increased wages, he may not have had a brilliant season by his standards, but he has played in a lot of games, plus hardy had a break from the session before. A unnamed Champions League team – well shows you how much he is rated. Our huge loss and some one else’s gain. Very disappointed.