West Ham may have to sell one of last season's top performers

Alphonse Areola has been one of the best signings for West Ham since his arrival from Paris Saint-Germain initially on loan in June 2021. Areola was signed permanently by former manager, David Moyes for a fee of around £8 million which saw the French keeper sign a five-year contract at the London Stadium until 2027 with an option for a further year.

At the beginning of the 2023/24 season, Areola gained the trust of the Scottish manager to be the number one for West Ham ahead of Lukasz Fabianski. And if not for Areola's heroics, the Hammers would have finished at fifteenth in the Premier League last season considering they conceded a whopping 74 goals.

West Ham may have to sell one of last season's top performers

The 31-year-old made a number of remarkable saves and saved two penalties as well leading West Ham to a decent ninth place finish. This season also, the Frenchman is expected to be the starting keeper under Lopetegui despite the arrival of 33-year-old, Wes Foderingham.

However, recent reports from Arriyadiyah are worrying from Hammers point of view. The report reveals that rich Saudi Pro League club, Al-Ittihad view Areola as an alternative to Manchester City's Ederson.

As reported by transfer expert, Fabrizio Romano, Al-Ittihad have agreed personal terms with Ederson however, Pep Guardiola's side are demanding a transfer fee of €50 million (£42 million) which is proving to be complicated for the Saudi Pro League club who have recently added Aston Villa's Moussa Diaby for £50 million to their squad.

When quizzed on Ederson's future, Pep Guardiola said,

""I don’t know if Éderson will stay. He has to make a decision"."

- Pep Guardiola

Fabrizio Romano updated on the situation, saying,

""Éderson already accepted Saudi Pro League move from May but no agreement on fee yet between Al Ittihad and Man City.
City insist on €50/60m to let Brazilian GK leave"."

- Fabrizio Romano

The report speculates that West Ham are keeping a close eye on this transfer with it not being ruled that Al-Ittihad start negotiations with the Hammers for Alphonse Areola. Areola is a cheaper alternative to Ederson and transfer fee will not be an issue for Al-Ittihad as they can pay a significant transfer fee to West Ham.

However, from West Ham's point of view, if they end up selling Areola, this would add a new goalkeeper as another transfer priority alongside a new striker, centre-back and a right-back. Hence, West Ham should keep hold of their star performer Areola to boost their top six ambitions.