West Ham United manager David Moyes has hinted his side could return for Leeds United pair Kalvin Phillips and Raphinha this summer.
The Hammers reportedly saw separate bids of £50 million rejected by Leeds for both of the key Whites duo as they looked to strengthen their squad during the latter stages of the January window.
Their approach has been criticised by some members of the media, most notably Simon Jordan, who claimed that West Ham knew when submitting the offers there was a minimal chance of it being accepted.
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Given that Leeds faced struggles of their own in signing players last month, coupled with their position in the league, it would have taken extortionately high offers for the Whites to even think about selling their two prized assets at the midway point of the season.
Both players have too been linked with moves to some of Europe’s biggest clubs and so their interest in a move to the London Stadium is also dubious.
Despite that, West Ham boss Moyes has dropped a hint that his side may resurrect their pursuit in the summer, suggesting that good things come to those that wait, when asked directly about the Leeds duo in his pre-Kidderminster Harriers press conference.
Via Football London, he said: “I’d never tell you my targets because that would be wrong even the names you are mentioning I could not guarantee if you were correct or not.
“But what I do want to do is be ambitious here at West Ham. I want to bring in good players and I want to add to what I think is a really good squad, we are building on it. Sometimes, getting things you actually want, you have to wait a little bit longer.
“We were not able to get it this January window. But I think it was quite obvious to most clubs, as I said I think it was nine clubs who didn’t do any business in January, so it should be no surprise to a lot of people that we were one, but we did try very hard I have to say."
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