West Ham set to accelerate talks for new midfielder – Money from Rice’s sale should help in negotiations

With Declan Rice now gone, there’s a bigger expectation about West Ham United’s chase for Juventus midfielder Denis Zakaria.

It’s Turin newspaper Tuttosport who today feature a story about this pursuit, claiming that following the €121m sale, the Hammers can now buy.

An agreement isn’t expected immediately, because the talks between West Ham and Juventus have been taking place for days, with the clubs still finding some difference in the price.

It’s claimed that while the Hammers want to spend €13m on the signing, the Old Lady want something between €20m and €25m.

Tuttosport explain that even though the money from Rice’s sale won’t convince West Ham to arrive and meet Juventus’ request for Zakaria, that big amount will make the deal more likely.

Juventus are focused on offloading some midfielders this summer, and following Zakari’s transfer, they shall close deals for Arthur and Weston McKennie.

Judging by how things stand, the deal with West Ham is the one which will give the Old Lady most money, so it’s no surprise to see the Turin media highlighting this over the others.