West Ham could be lurking in our territory as they seem intent on signing Everton’s Ross Barkley ahead of next season. The Daily Star claims that the Hammers are willing to meet the £140,000 weekly wage that the England midfielder wants, something that Spurs aren’t sure of giving him.

We all know the history of Barkley with his current club and the fact that he didn’t sign a new contract with the Toffees should have played into our hands. Unfortunately, it seems that the Hammers want to shore up their team ahead of another bid season at the London Stadium and Barkley could be the centrepiece for the side.

The problem with us lies with our strict wage structure, sorting that Daniel Levy wouldn’t let go off even if we are signing a player that has a lot of potential. Barkley reportedly earns only half of the £140,000 wage demands at Everton and with West Ham willing to fork up the amount; he could be lured to another club in London.

This certainly would come as a big blow to us as we have been tracking the England international from the winter window. Mauricio Pochettino has to spend money to bring quality players to the team ahead of a big season and the lack of quality players could lead to another poor performance in the cups, as we saw last season.

The one thing that is going for us is the fact that we are better placed to challenge for the Premier League title and have European football too, something that will appeal to Barkley. However, given the nature of the player and his behaviour at Everton over a new contract, it wouldn’t be a surprise if he does move to the Hammers for more first team football and less competition in the starting XI.

We don’t require a player that gets turned because of money, playing for a better team should come first and we will know the answer regarding Barkley’s decision about joining a club soon enough.