West Ham have had a verbal offer for midfielder James Ward Prowse rejected according to news reports. It is understood the offer was rejected by Southampton due to the structure of the deal
The Hammers are believed to have offered Flynn Downes as a sweetener, but only on loan. Whilst the South Coast club are interested in Downes, they will only consider a permanent transfer.
From a West Ham perspective, loaning the player to the Saints makes absolute sense. There are still some people within the club who believe Downes has a big future. What is not so clear is why the offer was just a verbal one rather than a written bid.
I’m sure there is much gauging of interest in the murky world of transfers, but West Ham are lagging behind in the race for signings. David Moyes interest in Ward Prowse is long established. As a result, one would expect that the bidding process would be more advanced than just ‘exploratory talks’.
Quite where this leaves Flynn Downes in terms of preparation ahead of a Premier League season is anyone’s guess. Having sold Declan Rice, many were expecting the staunch Hammers fan to used more rather than less.
It’s probably fair to assume that Downes is not in the long-term plans of David Moyes. For that reason he’s being used as a makeweight to try and tempt Southampton to sell.
Clearly the temptation of a loan is not enough of a lure to bring the Saints to the negotiating table. West Ham will have to either stump up the asking price in full or offer Downes as a permanent trade.
