West Ham United may be forced to sell teenage sensation Ravel Morrison in January following an extrodinary twist within regards to his contract situation at West Ham United.
Morrison’s £18 million release clause has already been made public, but there is a second clause about which the relegation-threatened Hammers are far more nervous.
West Ham could face the possibility of having to quadruple Morrison’s wages to a huge £60,000 a week if a bid of £10 million is offered, something Allardyce, Gold and Sullivan are sweating about.
Morrison earns around £15,000 a week and the clause states that he will be entitled to a pay rise to £60,000 a week if West Ham receive a £10 million bid for the player in question.
The Hammers slipped down to 19th place, firmly based in a relegation battle, and both Gold and Sullivan could be rather reluctant to give the teenage midfield maestro a lucrative deal at Upton Park, with West Ham’s Premier League survival under threat, following Saturday’s 3-3 draw against fellow strugglers West Bromwich Albion.
However, that clause is further complicated as the bid would have to be unconditional and the £10 million would also have to be made in one up-front payment.
The Hammers have been made aware of potential interest of some of the Premier League’s top clubs, including Newcastle United, his former club Manchester United, and fellow relegation strugglers Fulham, who are currently managed by former United youth team manager Rene Meulensteen.
Selling such an influential young player would be an unpopular move, with fans already calling for Allardyce’s head after some poor results of recent late.
However Allardyce has stated he needs to sell before he can then go out on the transfer market and buy, with the Hammers being linked with the likes of Everton striker Nikita Jelevic, out of favour Chelsea striker Demba Ba, and Asamoah Gyan, as Allardyce looks to solve his increasing striker crisis, with Andy Carroll out on the sidelines.
There has been speculation over Allardyce’s future with the manager admitting that his position could come under threat unless results improved.
Co-chairman David Sullivan confirmed that Allardyce retained the board’s support.
“We back our manager, we have four key players out on long-term injuries, but we are doing all we can to sign reinforcements early in January,”
West Ham are missing record signing Andy Carroll, who has yet to play this season, plus key defender Winston Reid, winger Stewart Downing and Ricardo Vaz Te, while James Tomkins limped out of Saturday’s match with an unfortunate groin injury.
The Hammers are in desperate need of a win, and travel to relegation rivals Fulham on New Years Day.
By Ben Reardon
@BenReardon1
