West Ham manager David Moyes admitted his side had a bid for Kalvin Phillips turned down in January - one larger than the £45million he was sold to Manchester City for. The former Whites midfielder was officially confirmed as a City player on Monday after they agreed an initial fee of £42million plus £3million potential add-ons.
The Whites reportedly had offers higher than that of the Premier League champions - including a late approach from Paris Saint-Germain - but were pushed towards Pep Guardiola’s side after Phillips made it clear he only wanted to move to the Etihad.
The 26-year-old was linked with a move to West Ham both this summer and back in January, and now Hammers boss Moyes has confirmed that the London club ‘bid more’ than the £45million from City during the January window, but saw their offers turned down by Leeds.
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“We bid more than that.” Moyes said in an interview with the Daily Mail . “We’re trying to be competitive with the big teams. If we can’t, we have to find another way of keeping up with them.”
Leeds’ rejection of the offer will likely have been affected more by the timing than the valuation. The club were in the midst of the injury and form crises that led to a final day relegation scrap and the departure of Marcelo Bielsa, which will only have emphasised the importance of Phillips’ presence - injured or not.
Those in charge at Elland Road will have known that the decision to sell their talismanic midfielder as they fought for survival would have been suicidal, and they were unlikely to have sold Phillips for any price. Moyes did not make clear during the interview whether the Hammers went back in for another go after the season ended.
West Ham have also held serious interest in Raphinha - again both in January and this summer - but have fallen behind the likes of Chelsea and Barcelona as they cannot provide Champions League football. Moyes’ side saw off the departure of Whites target Sonny Perkins with a scathing statement regarding the teenager’s representatives, who they believe have manufactured a deal with another club and pushed the player away from the London Stadium.
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