Mohammed Kudus could be priced out of a move away from West Ham United next summer because of his £85million release clause, according to former scout Mick Brown.
The Ghana international has become a mainstay in the squad at the London Stadium since joining the club from Ajax in the summer of 2023, with his fine performances last season seeing him considered as one of the best attacking midfielders in the division.
That type of quality has seen him linked with a move to some of the Premier League’s big boys including Liverpool and Chelsea, but the Hammers hold the leverage for any potential deal and it now seems that they could be set to make the 24-year-old stay for a little while longer yet.While speaking to Football Insider, the club’s former scout Mick Brown has revealed that there are clubs interested in signing Kudus and with a release clause that becomes active next summer there is a chance he moves on.
However, the £85million figure may be something that puts those interested clubs off and West Ham are highly unlikely to lower their demands as they want to keep Kudus for as long as they can.
“I know other clubs are interested and have been watching him.
“But I’ve seen an £85million release clause mentioned, I’ve heard that could put some of the interested clubs off of a move.
“It would have to be a situation where he wants to leave the club, but then you look around and you can’t see anybody who’s going to pay £85million for him.
“Man City have got enough wide players already, Liverpool won’t be able to afford it, where would he fit in the Arsenal team? Where does he go in the Chelsea team?
“Madueke is doing very well and improving, Cole Palmer is one of the best players in the league at the moment, they’ve got another load of wide players who don’t get near the team.
“You never know with Chelsea, though. We’ll see what happens with them.
“I’ve been told there are a lot of teams who want to sign Kudus from West Ham, and there are only three or four clubs who could maybe afford that price.
“But then you look at what they’ve already got and they don’t need him.”While the Hammers look set to keep hold of Kudus for the foreseeable future, two other attackers could be set to move on in 2025 with the club open to allowing Michail Antonio and Danny Ings to leave.
Antonio has been a regular in the starting lineup this season and broke his duck for the season against Ipswich this past weekend, while Ings has been a regular off the bench and has also netted once this season for Lopetegui.
Both players are in the final year of their contract in east London, and the club could look to cash in early on in January to free up space for more signings for the Spanish manager after his nine arrivals in the summer.
However, they would need to convince the players to move on too with the final decision ultimately down to the individual forwards as they will be able to speak to foreign clubs about a pre-contract agreement from January 1st.