Much like West Ham United, Championship competitors Middlesboro’ have been active in the sales market this Summer. The Championship’s nearly-men sold their top midfielder Hayden Hackney – a one time West Ham target – to David Moyes’ Everton for £24 million and are now wrestling with the thorny challenge of signing a replacement ahead of the weekend’s commencement of hostilities.
West Ham United sold their own midfielder Matteus Fernandes to Tottenham in an £85 million deal which did much for their balance sheet but nothing for their creativity.
‘Boro, Wolves and West Ham target James is apparently a ‘sensible’ £10 million
The Irons are now looking at adding to their current array of one-dimensional midfielders and have alighted on the same target as their Premier League opponents.
Both ‘Boro and the Hammers are keen to land Jordan James, according to footballleagueworld.co.uk, with the midfielder – currently based at State Rennes – seen as one of the hottest prospects, with fellow promotion contenders Wolves also keen:
“Middlesbrough must fend off Wolverhampton Wanderers and West Ham United threat for Hayden Hackney replacement Jordan James”.
With 11 goals in 34 games last year, James is more of an attacking midfielder than Hackney: West Ham should have no problem affording the quoted price of £10 million.
As an alternative to Celtic’s Arne Engels, for whom the price appears prohibitive, most West Ham fans would surely prefer the Rennes midfielder at less than half the price and the thought of the talented youngster joining a direct promotion competitor should light a fire under Koppen to get on and get this, plus a striker deal, done before the window closes.