FC Lorient ‘accepted an offer’ from West Ham United for Terem Moffi before selling the Premier League-linked striker to Ligue 1 rivals Nice in £26 million deal, president Loic Fery tells L’Equipe.
Wherever Moffi goes, goals seem to follow.
The Nigeria international was prolific in Lithuania. Belgium too. And, if there were any doubts about whether or not the former KV Kortrijk forward could make the step up to a major European league, Moffi has dispelled those quite emphatically at the Stade du Moustoir.
In 17 starts, Moffi hit the target 12 times for Lorient during an outstanding first half of the current campaign. And, for his next trick, the 23-year-old poacher will now be tasked with proving that he was what it takes to fire one of France’s most ambitious clubs into the Champions League.
West Ham United and Marseille miss out on Terem Moffi to Nice
Nice completed a 30 million euro deal for Moffi on deadline day; a team bankrolled by British billionaire Sir Jim Ratcliffe making the one-time Rangers target the most expensive acquisition in their entire history.
But, according to Fery, Nice are not the only side who had a bid for Moffi ‘accepted’.
“We had accepted an offer from Marseille and another from West Ham. (Both offers) were within our parameters,” the Lorient chief explains, criticising the way in which Nice went about their business.
“Nice continued to target our player. He was very distracted. When you say the exit conditions are ‘X’ and the first offer is a third of ‘X’, it is destabilising.
“I think that (Nice) will have to operate differently. Because, if they have the ambition that they display, they cannot destabilise (rival) clubs. There was a lack of consideration. It’s a shame.”
Nice are still eighth in Ligue 1 despite enjoying a run of three successive victories. Moffi made his debut, ironically enough, against a Marseille side who tried and failed to lure him to the Stade Velodrome. Igor Tudor’s side eventually snapping up Portuguese starlet Vitinha instead.
West Ham, meanwhile, will be without Danny Ings for a spell after he was struck down by injury on his claret-and-blue bow. Michail Antonio, then, still has a big part to play under David Moyes for the time being.
“I need to wait to see what is coming back from the medical team (about Ings’ fitness),” Moyes explains. “But at the moment, I am quite confident. He is desperate to get back playing again, so let’s hope.
I would never do anything without the medical people telling me. I would never go against their advice. They will be the ones telling me, I won’t be telling them.”
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