West Ham will have the option to recall Reece Oxford from his loan at Borussia Monchengladbach in January because the teenage star has not seen enough game time, according to the Daily Mail.
Manager David Moyes is reportedly happy to wait until the end of the month to decide whether to activate the break clause, as he assesses whether to terminate the loan.
Midfield ace Oxford, who has just turned 19, must appear in seven games before January for the break clause not to activate, but has only turned out three times so far.
With the club only having a cup tie against Bayer Leverkusen left before the winter break, the youngster will not reach that seven-game threshold.
Club insiders are said to have baulked at the suggestion that the Hammers were ready to sell the young starlet to Monchengladbach, especially for the touted price of £6million.
Under no circumstances would the Hammers let one of their young players go on the cheap, especially one that former boss Slaven Bilic had valued at £20million.
Moyes may recall Oxford if the squad suffer any critical injuries between now and January, and is said to be particularly focused on strengthening his midfield.
OPINION
Oxford’s brave decision to go abroad and play in the Bundesliga has not paid off so far, but his two recent starts suggest that he is beginning to settle in at his new club. While West Ham may be well-served by recalling the youngster, they should only do so if they find themselves critically short in midfield by January. If Oxford is just finding his feet in Germany, to cut that loan short only for him to sit on the bench at the London Stadium would be massively detrimental to the player. The news that the club are not looking to sell him will be well-received by Hammers fans, as Oxford has always been touted as one of their future stars.