Juande Ramos was heavily linked with one West Ham centre back until he left for Sunderland, and now the Spaniard is said to be about to test his arch-rival’s resolve with a £9m bid for an England international.

WEST HAM defender Matthew Upson is a target for London rivals Tottenham, according to reports.
The 29-year-old has shrugged off a series of injury problems to emerge as one of the Hammers’ most consistent performers following his £6million switch from Birmingham in January 2007.
That has seen him propelled into the England reckoning and he was rewarded with a first international cap in a competitive fixture in Saturday’s 5-1 win over Kazakhstan at Wembley.
However, Spurs boss Juande Ramos is desperate to shore up his leaky defence.
And, according to The People, the Spaniard is weighing up a £5millon offer for the former Arsenal centre back in the January transfer window. (Waltham Forest Guardian)

That £5m valuation could be wishful thinking, and many reports put Upson’s value at nearer to £9m. We are after all talking about a current England international who is near his peak at present. However, the east London club is supposedly desperately in need of funds due to its Icelandic owners being severely out of pocket after the huge cash crisis hitting the tiny island.

Add to that the fact that West Ham may have to fork out £30m to pay Sheffield United, following the whole Carlos Tevez debacle. Ledley King is seemingly invariably injured and Michael Dawson is just not good enough, so a potential partnership between the former Birmingham man and Jonathan Woodgate could well be a very good one. The kind of solid pairing that the club can build on.

Are Spurs fans willing to ignore the fact that Upson plays for West Ham and of course started at Arsenal?