West Ham saw a new £57m bid for Jhon Duran rejected by Aston Villa overnight with the Midlands club said to be demanding between £70-80m.
There is rarely a dull moment in the weird and wonderful world of West Ham, as Aston Villa will now attest.
The long-running Jhon Duran saga between the Hammers and Villa reignited last week.
After missing out on Duran after two months of negotiations in the summer, it was revealed West Ham had made a new £40m bid for the Colombian.
Hammers fans have been furious with the club ever since they opted not to meet Aston Villa’s £45m asking price for Duran as part of their summer rebuild.
Instead West Ham signed ageing and injury-prone forward Niclas Fullkrug and untested Brazilian teen Luis Guilherme with the money set aside for a striker.
The club confirmed to Hammers News many months ago that was technical director Tim Steidten’s decision.
West Ham release statement on failed £57m Duran bid
Now back in charge if transfers, David Sullivan let it be known the Hammers had indeed submitted a new bid for Duran to Aston Villa.
“We’ve tried, but PSG and a few foreign clubs have outbid us,” Claret and Hugh reported at the time.
“We never mention to supporters failed bids as it frustrates them.”
What it also did was raise expectations about the situation regarding Duran and West Ham’s finances.
Sullivan made a rod for his own back with West Ham’s new bid.
Because fans started to believe West Ham are receiving encouragement from Duran’s camp or Villa that a deal is there to be done.
And Hammers supporters are understandably now expecting to see that money spent elsewhere if a deal can’t be done for Duran.
Yet in the same breath, the club have continued to claim they are at their limit in terms of wages when it comes to PSR.
Out of nowhere, there were further developments overnight.
Now Sky Sports have confirmed the striker West Ham have as a ridiculous Duran back-up plan after the latest Aston Villa snub.
Sky Sports confirm West Ham’s ridiculous Duran back-up plan
Athletic journalist David Ornstein reported West Ham had made a new £57m bid for Duran.
That’s close to the £60m many believe might tempt Aston Villa into negotiations.
The bid was rejected by the Villans, though.
Seeking clarity on the remarkable situation, Hammers News reached out to the top spokesman for West Ham’s owners.
The key senior Hammers contact released an 11-word statement on the new Duran bid.
Essentially the club confirmed the offer was rejected and that they must ‘admit defeat and move on’ to other targets.
Except now West Ham fans – and presumably new manager Graham Potter – justifiably expect the club has £57m to spend on alternatives.
Sky Sports News were reporting that Villa had rejected West Ham’s new bid for Duran last night.
Then they brought breaking news from their sources about who West Ham were turning to as an alternative.
West Ham fans might want to be sitting down for this one.
Because after making a huge club record £57m bid for exciting 21-year-old all-action striker Duran, West Ham’s plan B has been confirmed as Andre Silva.
Yes West Ham fans, you are reading that correctly.
Nomadic Portuguese forward Silva has been one of a host of uninspiring strikers linked with the Hammers in the last week.
But now Sky Sports’ source has confirmed he is indeed West Ham’s Duran Plan B.
Silva is West Ham’s Plan B and it doesn’t add up
“West Ham remain interested in RB Leipzig forward Andre Silva,” Sky Sports reported as breaking news after revealing Villa had snubbed the Duran bid.
“One source has told Sky Sports News they have made initial enquiries.
“Leipzig would prefer a permanent deal or at least a loan that comes with an obligation.
“Silva hasn’t started a Bundesliga game this season.”
In terms of profile, you could not get two more opposite ends of the scale than Duran and Silva.
The Leipzig outcast is nearly 30, has a distinct lack of pace and strength and is known for very much being a box striker who offers little else to the team.
Contrasting target profiles make no sense
But Silva doesn’t even offer goals to make up for it.
West Ham’s big Duran back-up plan has scored just five goals in 41 games over the last two seasons.
Silva managed four last term and has just one so far this season.
Quite how or why West Ham would have such a contrasting profile of player as their next target is anyone’s guess.
Cynics believe West Ham’s bid for Duran is nothing more than a display of faux ambition.
To go from bidding £57m for such an outstanding young striker as Duran to potentially loaning a forward who is nearly 30 and has five goals in two seasons seems almost unbelievable.
It makes little to no sense.
And it just leaves West Ham’s hierarchy open to criticism once again.
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