By Kris Gonzo | Senior West Ham Columnist (Follow on X)
There is a growing sense that Roma are stepping up their pursuit of Crysencio Summerville, with Fabrizio Romano claiming the Serie A side have now agreed personal terms with the Dutch winger after talks with his representatives.
The sticking point, according to Romano, remains the small matter of agreeing a fee with West Ham… quite a significant issue if you ask me.
It All Feels Very Familiar
Quite why clubs insist on agreeing terms with a West Ham player before they’ve even reached an agreement with the club is beyond me.
Perhaps it’s simply a negotiating tactic, designed to heap pressure on the Hammers into accepting a lower offer once the player is supposedly “keen” on the move.
If that’s the plan, Roma may have picked the wrong club to try it on with.
West Ham’s owners have already shown this summer that they won’t be backed into a corner.
Just look at the Mateus Fernandes saga.
Plenty of noise, plenty of interest, but when the bidding didn’t meet the club’s valuation, the Hammers stood firm until the numbers were right.
I’d expect exactly the same approach with Summerville.
Pay Up Or Move On
Leaking stories about agreed personal terms to Fabrizio Romano might generate plenty of clicks on social media, but it won’t knock millions off West Ham’s asking price.
Reports this week suggest Roma are trying to keep any deal below €40 million, while West Ham definitely value the winger significantly higher.
Romano is increasingly being seen as employing the dark transfer arts on behalf of agents seeking to unsettle players.
If Roma genuinely want Crysencio Summerville, they’ll have to pay the going rate.
Claret & Hugh has reported throughout the summer that West Ham are prepared to play the long game, and I don’t see that changing now.
It’s very simple.
Pay the asking price… or move on.
Gonzo exactly the right thing to do. For once we have a board willing to fight our corner hard, and that is so refreshing. We use to feel down about lossing one of our better players, then we would make a loss or sell him cheap leaving no money for decent replacements. Can’t do much about loading the player but should get decent replacements doing this
It seems to happen to clubs all the time now, but something needs tightening up with the rules on unsolicited contact with players under contract to another club. If you have formal contract negotiations with agent it is a breach of FIFA regs and is ‘classed as ‘tapping up’ and is deemed an illegal approach. Buying clubs seem to get round by calling the negotiation’s ‘informal’ and this loophole needs to be closed by deeming any form of contact without the permission of the player’s current club ‘tapping up’. Having said that most Italian clubs no longer have the money for big transfer fees or wages so not surprising they are doing this in an attempt to bring the asking price down.
I’m really glad the club are taking this approach. It belies the idea of us needing a fire sale after relegation, and sends the message to all concerned that players we value will cost a premium.