West Ham United are likely to be busy in the summer transfer window, although they may not have too much money to play around with.
Graham Potter needs to bring in new players, with attacking reinforcements likely high on West Ham’s agenda along with replacements for an ageing midfield.
Plans are apparently being drafted up to try and raise £100million in West Ham player sales this summer in order to give Potter a decent transfer kitty.
One midfielder West Ham are said to be after has a relatively modest £25million price tag and, better still, he is said to be “destined for the top”.
READ MORE: Graham Potter has told West Ham he really wants £25m player signed up this summer
West Ham target Chris Rigg likened to Roy Keane and Jack Grealish
The player in question is Chris Rigg, who has been lighting up the Championship for Sunderland despite being just 17 years old.
Sky Sports has claimed that West Ham and Everton are among the clubs tracking Rigg, who scored the winner for England’s Under-19s on Tuesday night.
Rigg is one of the best players plying his trade outside the Premier League and, should Sunderland fail to get promoted, he’s likely to move up without them.
In terms of Rigg’s style of play, the player himself told The Athletic earlier this season: “I could say I’m just a traditional midfielder.
“I love to attack, I love to defend. I can do both. I can add to it. And as you can see I love a tackle as well. Kind of a box-to-box midfielder.”
Tony Mowbray previously said Rigg possesses a “Roy Keane-esque type of nastiness” that makes him extremely effective out of possession.
Meanwhile, former Sunderland striker Marco Gabbiadini told the Daily Mail last year: “He is one of those players that gets the fans on the edge of their seat every time he gets it.
“He is very quick with his passing. He gets it out of his feet quickly and moves it. His balance is incredible. He reminds me a little bit of Jack Grealish, the way he carries the ball, sort of stuck to his toe.
“He is also quite tenacious. He doesn’t shirk out of tackles or challenges. That has been one of the features of his game.
“He has been a revelation. It is not very often you get a lad of 17 playing so many matches.
“There are not many players who have made a breakthrough at that age in the league and carried it through, other than (Jude) Bellingham when he was at Birmingham.”
It has been reported that Sunderland value Rigg at around £25million, though a bidding war could well break out for the talented teenager.
Who West Ham could be up against in Chris Rigg race
West Ham and Everton are not the only clubs in pursuit of the Sunderland gem, with a host of other Premier League clubs also circling.
TBR Football chief correspondent Graeme Bailey confirmed that Arsenal and Tottenham had scouts in attendance to watch Rigg in action against Millwall in November.
Arsenal and Manchester United then had scouts watching Rigg in Sunderland’s 3-2 win over local rivals Middlesbrough earlier this month, according to TBR Football sources.
