James Ward-Prowse to West Ham seems inevitable, with one Hammer heading in the opposite direction

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West Ham have stepped up their interest in signing James Ward-Prowse from Southampton this summer.

According to a report from The Guardian, Southampton skipper James Ward-Prowse is firmly on the radar of West Ham in the summer transfer window.

READ ALSO: Mass exodus could continue as club make official contact with the agents of 27-year-old West Ham ace

And if the 28-year-old does join the Hammers, David Moyes could send Flynn Downes in the opposite direction.

The East London outfit have been heavily linked with a move to sign the 28-year-old Saints midfielder for quite some time now – most recently just last month.

And now it seems as though West Ham are ready to try and push through a deal for the 11-capped England international…

James Ward-Prowse to West Ham seems inevitable, one Hammer could head in the opposite direction

The Guardian reckon that the Hammers are pushing to sign the 28-year-old Southampton midfielder, and he could cost around £40 million.

Moyes could also send Downes to St Mary’s in an effort to sweeten the deal.

I’m just not convinced that we should be splashing out £40 million on Ward-Prowse when there are players out there like Sofyan Amrabat, Khephren Thuram and Ibrahim Sangare available for similar money or even cheaper!

Don’t get me wrong, the 28-year-old is a very good player and has been described as the ‘Premier League’s most underrated player’ by Michael Richards (Daily Echo). His free-kick and corner taking technique has been described as ‘unreal’ (Give Me Sport).

However, I think we need to be more ambitious in our summer recruitment.I feel like we need to be signing someone with far more physicality to strengthen our engine room.

What was the point in bringing Tim Steidten in and then signing someone who will soon be 29 and is a well-known Premier League name? I can guarantee you now that Ward-Prowse is not a Steidten target.

If we are able to sign the Saints skipper for around £20 million, then I think he could be worth pursuing. Any more than £25 million or so though, and Moyes needs to walk away.

The Scot should listen to what Tim Steidten has to say on the matter…

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