Leeds United
LATEST; Jack Clarke has resurfaced this summer
Premier League interest in former Leeds United star Jack Clarke has resurfaced this summer with reports claiming West Ham United are weighing up a move for the Sunderland winger.
Clarke has just come off the back of a best-ever individual season at Sunderland, having registered 15 goals and four assists in 40 league appearances – enough to earn him the club’s Player of the Season award. The 23-year-old was a rare shining light in an otherwise miserable season at the Stadium of Light in which the Black Cats burned through three managers and finished 16th.
Sunderland are expecting to receive bids for Clarke in the coming months and Football Insider reports that West Ham could return for the tricky winger, having opened initial talks in January. A mid-season move was quickly ruled out by those in charge on Wearside, with play-off hopes still alive at that point and the prospect of losing a star player waved away.
But the Hammers look to have kept tabs on Clarke and are exploring the possibility of a move, with new manager Julen Lopetegui keen to strengthen his attacking options. Sunderland rejected an offer worth £10million in total from Burnley last summer and are thought to want at least £15m this time round, given his performances over the past campaign.
West Ham have built up a reputation in snapping up top Championship talent and developing them into Premier League players, with notable examples Jarrod Bowen and Said Benrahma, who arrived from Hull City and Brentford respectively. They could also lose Lucas Paqueta for a considerable period, after the Football Association charged the player last month for allegedly getting booked deliberately “for the improper purpose of affecting the betting market”.
