Journalist Dean Jones has revealed that contract talks between West Ham United and Tomas Soucek are on hold after they failed to agree on terms of a new deal.
Although Soucek’s contract doesn’t run out until summer 2024, West Ham are keen on pinning him down to a new deal due to the interest that has surrounded him from top European sides. Soucek signed with the Hammers for £19.1m after impressing initially on loan.
Soucek has been a mainstay in the last two seasons for West Ham, and last term featured in all 38 Premier League games, whilst chipping in with 10 goals. This season, he has made 29 league appearances and has scored four goals.
With the consistent performances of Soucek in recent times, West Ham tried to tie him down to a new deal, but Jones highlighted to GiveMeSport that both parties decided it would be best to leave negotiations until the end of the season, as a deal could not be decided.
He said: “The talks have been put on hold because they couldn’t get close to agreeing on a deal. Both parties decided that they could just ease off for a moment and then they’ll go back in for a new set of talks towards the end of the season.”
TIF Thoughts on Dean Jones’ comments…
It would be a massive loss for West Ham if they lost their Czech Republic midfielder, as this season in the Premier League he has an average player rating of 7/10, has a successful dribble rate of 60% and gives the ball away on average just 11.3 times per game, as per SofaScore.
Declan Rice has been heavily linked with a move away from West Ham in the summer, so if a deal for the Englishman is agreed, it could be argued Soucek will be offered an improved contract to ensure that he stays at the club and the Hammers avoid losing a number of their star players.