West Ham United finally completed the sale of Declan Rice to Arsenal for a club record fee of £105m and manager David Moyes looks set to reinvest this sum into strengthening the team ahead of next season.
Manchester United defender Harry Maguire has caught the eye of the Scot and with a transfer kitty that would make most managers envious, he certainly has the funds to make some big signings this summer.
How much will Harry Maguire cost?
According to The Telegraph, the Hammers look set to test the resolve of the Red Devils by making a bid for the Englishman and with Erik ten Hag stripping him of the captaincy recently, it might be time for him to finally depart Old Trafford and seek pastures new.
United have set their valuation of the defender at £50m and this would represent a big loss from the £80m that they splashed out on him back in 2019, yet it appears as though Ten Hag is keen on moving him on this summer.
With the Irons having money to burn, they may still see £50m as an unrealistic fee, and with just two years left on his current United deal, they may have to bring his asking price down slightly in order to sanction a sale this year.
Why was Harry Maguire stripped of the captaincy at Manchester United?
Throughout the entirety of the 2022/23 campaign, Maguire started a grand total of 16 matches, which included just eight in the Premier League as Ten Hag preferred a defensive duo of Lisandro Martinez and Raphael Varane.
Being stripped of the captaincy will now surely accelerate his exit from the club and Moyes could offer him regular game time, while forging a solid partnership alongside Nayef Aguerd at the heart of his defence.
The Moroccan international endured a stop-start season, primarily due to suffering a serious ankle injury in pre-season, yet he still ranked second for accurate passes per game (33.3) across the whole West Ham squad in the league, as well as third for overall rating as per Sofascore.
He also provided an unlikely goal threat, ranking in the top 6% compared to positional peers across Europe’s big five leagues for non-penalty goals per 90 (0.11).
Maguire could slot in alongside him and offer a more physical presence which would combine well with Aguerd’s solid passing ability.
The Englishman ranked in the top 12% across the big five European leagues for aerials won per 90 (3.01) and the top 11% for blocks per 90 (1.66) which suggests he is a titan at the back, especially with WhoScored stating that his major strength is aerial duels.
Former teammate David De Gea once hailed Maguire as “fantastic” just earlier this year and despite looking out of his depth at the club on certain occasions, he could still offer plenty to West Ham, who conceded 55 goals last term, certainly not the worst total, but it was four more than the previous season, suggesting they need some improvement at the back to move back into the top half.
The next few weeks could be very interesting indeed and Moyes will be confident of luring Maguire to the club.