West Ham sanctioned Seb Haller’s Ajax transfer as they feared being stuck with flop striker

Posted Saturday, January 09, 2021 by Thesun.co.uk

WEST HAM feared being saddled with flop Seb Haller unless they offloaded him to Ajax.

The striker has joined the Dutch side in a £25million deal despite having more than three years left on his contract.

Seb Haller did not find his feet in the Premier League despite a hefty fee

Irons boss David Moyes is now embarking on a 24/7 search to find a replacement after cutting his losses on Haller, who cost a club-record £42m in 2019.

It will be a tough job but there were concerns that if they held on any longer to the low-scoring Ivorian international, 26, his value would plummet even further and they would be stuck with him.

Bournemouth’s Josh King, 28, ex-West Ham striker Marko Arnautovic, 31, and 24-year-old Boulaye Dia of French side Stade Reims have all been considered as alternatives to Haller but may be too costly or too much of a risk.

West Ham’s board have promised Moyes all the funds raised from Haller’s sale will be made available to him to strengthen the squad

The Scot would ideally like to bring in a young, hungry new signing to help with his team-building plans for the long term, even though he himself could be on his way in the summer.

Moyes, 57, who has transformed West Ham from relegation strugglers last season to a top-ten team, sees his 18-month deal expire at the end of the season.

But he has still not been offered a new contract by co-chairman David Sullivan.