Romano Update Raises Questions Over Edson Álvarez Transfer

By Kris Gonzo | Senior West Ham Columnist (Follow on X)

Football transfer insider Fabrizio Romano has revealed that Real Sociedad are now in contact with West Ham to ‘find a solution’ for an Edson Álvarez deal.

Romano’s update is oddly worded given that it’s relatively common knowledge that the Mexican is available.

Presumably, the La Liga club have already been in touch with Álvarez and his representatives. So we can therefore conclude that wages are unlikely to be the problem.

It’s difficult to understand precisely what this ‘solution’ might be, but it has got some alarm bells ringing.

West Ham should demand their price

The obvious solution would be to pay West Ham £20 million and Sociedad would be able to sign the player.

However, Romano’s update doesn’t instil a lot of confidence that Sociedad have the readies to buy him.

Given West Ham’s owners have just sanctioned a deal for Aaron Wan-Bissaka to join Aston Villa on terms which seem to suit every club aside from West Ham, it may well be time to put our foot down and say Álvarez stays unless the Hammers’ valuation is met.

Álvarez’s expected departure has been on the cards for some time, but giving him permission to leave doesn’t mean West Ham should accept any old deal.

After all, we did precisely the opposite earlier in the transfer window when selling Crysencio Summerville and Mateus Fernandes, holding out for huge fees rather than allowing interested clubs to dictate the terms.

Álvarez can still be useful to Nuno

And, let’s be fair, Nuno Espírito Santo’s team would certainly benefit from somebody like Álvarez in the squad.

West Ham are hardly overflowing with players at the moment, particularly with Nuno’s squad requiring further reinforcements and numerous players heading towards the exit door.

I believe the club have been more than accommodating by telling the midfielder and his representatives that he has permission to leave.

But if interested clubs can’t afford to buy him, then that’s hardly the fault of West Ham.

At some point we have to stop finding ‘solutions’ for everybody else and start finding a few for ourselves.