West Ham have agreed a £32m deal to sign the Ajax midfielder Edson Álvarez and made an improved bid of £30m for Manchester United’s Harry Maguire. They are also trying to buy Maguire’s club-mate Scott McTominay.
West Ham’s latest push for Maguire comes after they failed with an attempt to take the defender on loan and had a £20m offer rejected. Maguire left Leicester for £80m four years ago and made eight Premier League starts last season. An issue is that the 30-year-old received a considerable salary increase as a result of United qualifying for the Champions League. West Ham are working to find a solution around Maguire’s wages and believe a package of £55m-£60m could convince United to sell him and McTominay.
Álvarez has agreed terms on a five-year deal and is set to fly to London for a medical. The Mexico international will be West Ham’s first summer signing and his arrival will come as a boost for David Moyes, whose future as manager is under renewed scrutiny after a difficult pre-season.
Moyes has struggled to agree on signings with Tim Steidten, West Ham’s new technical director, and faces missing out on one of his top targets, Southampton’s James Ward-Prowse. West Ham do not want to pay more than £30m for the Southampton midfielder and a deal is unlikely at this stage.
West Ham’s interest in Ward-Prowse could be revisited later in the window but the focus is on other targets. West Ham want two midfielders after selling Declan Rice to Arsenal for £105m and losing Manuel Lanzini on a free transfer. They have been tracking Álvarez for a while and stepped up their interest in the 25-year-old at the end of last week.
Álvarez almost joined Borussia Dortmund at the start of the window, only for the move to collapse because of personal terms. He was targeted by Chelsea last year and is ready for a fresh challenge at West Ham, whose initial interest had been complicated by demands relating to agent fees.
The hope is that signing Álvarez will improve the mood around West Ham, who were beaten 4-0 by Bayer Leverkusen in a friendly last Saturday. They visit Bournemouth on Saturday and sources have said that Moyes’s job will be at risk if West Ham make a slow start to the season. Discontent over the style of play has festered in the dressing room since last season.
Moyes will feel his hand has been strengthened by West Ham winning the Europa Conference League. He has asked for proven Premier League players and Steidten has struggled to convince him to move for the Monaco midfielder Youssouf Fofana.
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West Ham are working to improve relations between Moyes and Steidten. With Álvarez expected to play in defensive midfield, they have been tracking McTominay since January. The 26-year-old Scotland international could need to leave United if he wants to play regularly. United have signed Mason Mount and want the Fiorentina midfielder Sofyan Amrabat.
Moyes could also look for a striker after Gianluca Scamacca completed his move to Atalanta on Monday, with Chelsea’s Armando Broja, Arsenal’s Folarin Balogun and Bournemouth’s Dominic Solanke in his sights. West Ham want a left-winger and could try to sign a left-back if Aaron Cresswell leaves. Cresswell’s move to Wolves has fallen through but West Ham are tracking Chelsea’s Ian Maatsen and Rennes’ Adrien Truffert.
