West Ham United are in talks with Ajax over Mohammed Kudus as they brace themselves for a new offer from Manchester City for Lucas Paqueta.
The Premier League champions made a verbal bid of £70m for 25-year-old Paqueta last week but West Ham, who have already lost Declan Rice to Arsenal this summer, quickly turned it down and informed City that they did not intend to part ways.
But City's need for midfield reinforcements was heightened by Kevin De Bruyne re-injuring his hamstring on the opening day of the season, potentially ruling him out of action for up to four months should surgery be required, and it's expected that a new offer for Paqueta will be lodged in the coming days.
The Hammers are aware of Paqueta's interest in moving to City, with personal terms not expected to be a problem, and although they would prefer he remains at London Stadium, sources have told 90min that West Ham would find it hard to refuse an offer 'too good to turn down'.
West Ham are actively looking to strengthen their squad, knowing Paqueta could end up leaving the club, and Ajax's Mohammed Kudus is a player that has emerged on the club's radar in recent weeks. 90min understands that talks are ongoing with Dutch giants Ajax over a potential Premier League switch, though interest in the versatile Ghanaian, who can play in midfield, out wide or up front, is high.
Brighton agreed a club-record £34.5m fee with Ajax at the beginning of the month but Kudus hasn't shown any real desire to move to the AMEX Stadium, even though the Seagulls are competing in this season's Europa League and have a proven track record of developing young players.
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Manchester United have also been tracking Kudus intently, as have Arsenal and Chelsea, though Erik ten Hag is yet to sanction a formal bid for a player he's previously worked with.
Kudus could expect to pocket decent wages at West Ham - they also have Europa League football to offer - but it's unclear at this stage whether or not the player would want to make the move above other options.
West Ham are also looking at other centre-backs after their move for former Manchester United captain Harry Maguire hit the rocks. A £30m deal had been agreed with the Red Devils, with the expectation that the 30-year-old would take a significant pay cut to allow the move to happen, but Maguire has been unable to agree a severance package with the 13-time Premier League winners.
Bayer Leverkusen's Jonathan Tah, Edmond Tapsoba and Odilon Kossounou are three players of interest to technical director Tim Steidten, while 90min understands that contact has also been made with VfB Stuttgart over former Arsenal defender Konstantinos Mavropanos.
Elsewhere, West Ham remain in the mix for in-demand Montpellier striker Elye Wahi, though Eintracht Frankfurt are favourites for his signature at this stage as Randal Kolo Muani, a player West Ham have also enquired about, nears a move to Paris Saint-Germain.
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This article was originally published on 90min as West Ham transfers: Kudus talks continue as Man City prepare new Paqueta offer.
