West Ham United are expected to beat Tottenham Hotspur in the race for Brentford Ivan Toney and make their “best signing” in more than a decade.
Toney finished last season with four goals and two assists in 17 appearances after missing most of the campaign due to a betting ban. But he remains one of England’s highest-rated centre-forwards after scoring 20 goals in 33 Premier League games last season and also impressing his limited playing time at Euro 2024.
Brentford boss Thomas Frank has been open that Toney could leave the club this summer. He would preferably like to continue running with the striker, but he knows Brentford will capitalize if a big offer comes in, especially as Toney’s contract expires in June 2025.
On Friday it emerged that Manchester United, Arsenal and Chelsea had cooled their interest in Toney, who could be signed for around £50m. This sparked a war of movements between London rivals Tottenham and West Ham for his services.
Darragh MacAnthony, president of Toney’s former club, Peterborough United, spoke out about the 28-year-old’s situation. He told West Ham to break the bank and get Toney before Tottenham because he would be one of the transfers in the club’s fashionable history.
“I think in my case, the bettor [in me] would say, knowing what David Sullivan is like at West Ham, that he likes Ivan Toney,” MacAnthony said during a recent media appearance.
“He will try to get it through a reduced offer from Brentford.
“And I know other people in Brentford and they would say ‘no chance’. But I know Sullivan will try, and if he had any sense he would do it.
“It would be the most productive signing West Ham have made in 12 years, a foreign striker for £70m who couldn’t knock on a barn door. “
West Ham have revelled in failed strikers as Gianluca Scamacca failed to reach the heights expected of him after joining the London Stadium in July 2022. Frustrating for the Hammers, Scamacca is a fatal striker at Atalanta.
As Toney knows the Prem well, his signing would bring much less to West Ham.
The deal interests MacAnthony as Peterborough will pocket a sale fee when Toney leaves Brentford. However, the club leader went on to dismiss the hypothesis that Peterborough would earn £10m or more from the clause, saying he expects his club to get £3-5m. pounds sterling.