West Ham United are stalling on Tottenham Hotspur’s interest in Mohammed Kudus in the hope that Chelsea rival them for the player.
Spurs have had an opening offer of £50m turned down for Kudus, who has been made the club’s top target under new manager Thomas Frank. West Ham are open to letting Kudus leave to raise funds for transfer business but are hopeful of attracting a higher bid.
Chelsea have expressed interest in signing the Ghana international and could reportedly firm up that interest after the Club World Cup. Enzo Maresca’s side will take on either Paris Saint-Germain or Real Madrid in Sunday’s final.
Despite the additions of Liam Delap, Joao Pedro and Jamie Gittens, Chelsea remain keen to add to their options in a frontline overhaul.
Joao Felix, Raheem Sterling and Noni Madueke could all depart, while Mykhailo Mudryk remains provisionally suspended. Kudus is viewed as a multi-functional option to boost the club’s depth and West Ham are waiting to discover the true extent of Chelsea’s interest.
Flashscore are reporting that the Hammers are stalling in negotiations with Spurs in the hope that a bidding war between their London rivals emerges.
Kudus is one of several options under consideration by Chelsea, who are also weighing up approaches for Aston Villa’s Morgan Rogers, Lyon winger Malick Fofana and Manchester United’s Alejandro Garnacho.
The West London side’s recruitment has been aided by their Club World Cup exploits. After reaching the final, Chelsea have banked a reported minimum of $105m (£77m) in prize money.
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