West Ham are set to sell youthful enforcers Reece Burke and Josh Cullen during the January transfer window, according to a club insider.
ExWHU Employee, a Twitter account that is a reliable source of Hammers news, reported on his personal Twitter account that centre-back Burke, 21, and central midfielder Cullen, 21, will return to the London Stadium on Monday after spending the opening half of the season out on loan.
He explained that the two players will be assessed by manager David Moyes before he makes a final decision on their futures, but it is “likely” they will both be sold next month.
Both Burke and Cullen are likely to be sold however ? https://t.co/AqfO7ax7Dd
— ExWHUemployee (@ExWHUemployee) December 30, 2017
Burke has made four West Ham appearances but has had loan spell at Bradford, Wigan Athletic and, in 2017-18, at Bolton Wanderers.
Cullen has made 12 senior Hammers appearances but has also had spells out on loan, at Bradford and alongside Burke at Bolton this season.
OPINION
Neither Burke and Cullen are of the calibre required by West Ham and it would be a tough but correct decision to permanently offload them next month. It is telling that the pair have been on the bench for Championship outfit Bolton for the last two months, which hardly suggests they are going to return to their parent club next month and rip it up. It would be a shame for the Hammers as both players are products of the club’s academy and have considerable potential. But it is more likely to be realised in the second or third tier of English football.