Bundesliga right-back Daniel Opare is at the centre of a tug-of-war between West Ham United and Everton.
Everton and West Ham are set to go head-to-head in the transfer market – and not for the first time either.
According to The Mail, Daniel Opare’s performances for FC Augsburg in the Bundesliga have attracted the attention of both the Premier League giants.
The Ghana international is out of contract next summer and could be available for as little as £3 million in the New Year – making Opare a cheap and astute option for Everton and West Ham, who are both lacking in depth at right-back.
And to add extra intrigue to this impending transfer battle, the IB Times report that both of the senior right-backs currently at West Ham’s disposal, Pablo Zabaleta and Sam Byram, moved to the London Stadium despite offers from Everton.
The report also adds that Italian international centre-back Angelo Ogbonna and the now departed Dimtri Payet (below), who dazzled for 18 months in claret and blue before leaving for Marseille, were also targets for The Toffees. But with West Ham based in London, they had the geographical edge on their north western adversaries.
So it goes without saying that Everton, and former Hammers boss Sam Allardyce, could do without losing their latest right-back target to David Moyes’ side.
Opare, an adventurous and athletic player who has been one of Augsburg’s standout performers this season, would likely be a stop-gap solution at Goodison Park, taking the pressure off youngster Jonjoe Kenny until Seamus Coleman can return from that broken leg.
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