Journalist Matt Law claims that West Ham are targeting Leeds right back Sam Byram in the Telegraph today.
He adds that the Hammers will make a cut-price January bid for the players whose contract expires at the end of the season.
The defender can play as a right-back or on the right side of midfield and is one of the most highly-rated players outside the Premier League. He has so far refused to extend his Leeds deal.
That has alerted a host of Premier League clubs, including Liverpool, Arsenal, Everton and Crystal Palace but West Ham are aiming to jump to the front of the queue for the 22-year-old. With the transfer window open in a few hours time the move seems unlikely this month.
David Sullivan has repeated several times that we haven’t got a penny to spend on wages at this moment and time and that was said after Matt Jarvis was sold to Norwich. Leeds are believed to want £8m for their young 22 year old star.
Claret and Hugh understands that David Sullivan and Tony Henry will use this January window to setup deals for this summer. If West Ham interested in the 22 year old right back it would make much more sense to wait until the summer and attempt to persuade the player to join the Hammers on a free transfer. As the player is under 24 Leeds would be due compensation but it would far lower than the £8m being touted in the papers today.
After the Telegraph story today, Leeds Manager Steve Evans said:
Nobody listened to me when I said during the summer that Jenks was an average full back, so is this guy. Let it be clear he is a very average rb and we should be targeting a better full back. I keep saying all season we have a better rb at the club in young oxford. We need to give him a run in the fa cup in this position.
Byram is a right midfielder in the making.No way is he going to carve a career as a fb.If we sign him as a fb we a wasting our time.As John says,average,average defender,great going forward with an eye for goal.As a rb,forget him imo 😉