A £30million deal collapsed earlier this month (Picture: Getty Images)
West Ham have reopened talks with Manchester United to sign Harry Maguire and are even prepared to contribute to his pay-off, according to reports.
The Hammers have been trying to prise the 30-year-old away from Old Trafford for most of the summer and had a £30million bid accepted earlier this month.
Maguire has fallen dramatically down the pecking order under Erik ten Hag and is effectively the fifth-choice centre-back option now, while he was also stripped of the captaincy.
However, the transfer collapsed two weeks ago with West Ham unable to agree personal terms with the England international.
A contributing factor to the deal falling through was Maguire’s mammoth salary – which actually went up this summer as a result of United qualifying for the Champions League.
While West Ham were prepared to offer the former Leicester defender a four-year deal worth £120,000-a-week, that was still £70k short of what he is currently on.
United are believed to have offered Maguire a sizeable payment of around £6m to offset that difference, but it was still less than what he would earn if he stays at Old Trafford and sees out his current terms.
Maguire still wants to fight for his place at United (Picture: Getty)
But now The Sun are reporting that West Ham are willing to contribute to Maguire’s pay-off as they make one final attempt to lure him to east London before the window closes.
Despite signing Greece international Konstantinos Mavropanos from Stuttgart, David Moyes remains to keen to add Maguire’s experience and nous to his back-line.
The Hammers are therefore exploring ways to pay a little more to United, which can then form a larger pay-off payment, in order to offset any salary losses.
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The deal is still thought to be extremely complicated, though, and Maguire remaining at Old Trafford remains the likeliest outcome – particularly this late in the summer.
United would have very little time to sign a replacement and Erik ten Hag is adamant he needs four centre-backs this season, with the Red Devils linked with a move for Nice’s Jean-Clair Todibo after missing out on a host of other defenders due to Maguire’s reluctance to leave.
Although the 30-year-old needs regular, consistent game time to ensure his inclusion in the England squad for next summer’s Euros, he is willing to put that on the line in order to fight for his place at United.
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A £30million deal collapsed earlier this month.