If Arsenal finally get over the line with their pursuit of Declan Rice, West Ham need to be in a position to be able to purchase his replacement straight afterwards.
David Moyes will be loathe to lose his captain this summer, though it’s accepted that the player wants to seek his fortune elsewhere.
The sooner that the deal can be sorted the better for all concerned, as it will give the Hammers enough time to find someone else without upsetting the equilibrium of the squad too much.
The last thing the Scot needs is to have a settled squad throughout pre-season, and then right at the last minute another signing or two come in to upset the team dynamic.
One problem that Moyes could find is that other clubs will know just how much his club will have in the bank if they do get Rice off of their books.
It’s perhaps with that in mind that Fulham have quoted a quite outrageous fee for one of their midfielders.
According to the Daily Mail, the Cottagers have slapped a £90m sale price on Joao Palhinha, should the east Londoners want to come calling.
As good a player as he is, Palhinha is three years older than Rice and only cost the west Londoners €20m a year ago, per transfermarkt.
The outlet also suggest his current market value is €40m, so Fulham will need to go some to justify why they believe that their player is worth almost double that.
Fulham do not need to “justify” the fee they can ask anything they want. West Ham have no entitlement the player is under contract to Fulham. Maybe West Ham will wake up and realise that Fulham are not selling Palhinha.