West Ham United are very eager to rope in Jordan Pickford and are reportedly ready to offer goalkeeper Adrian in a bid to make the deal more lucrative. Sunderland got relegated recently and Pickford’s form has made him the most tempting target in the summer.
Sunderland has been holding off him for a while but the 23-year-old is destined to leave the Stadium Of Light for better opportunities. The England U-21 international has been one of the shining prospects for that club in what has been an otherwise horrific season for the Black Cats as they got demoted to the Championship.
Sunderland will be looking for new faces as a number of players like Jermain Defoe, Fabio Borini and Sebastian Larsson are expected to leave the club and they will need to invest sufficiently in a bid to ensure the same thing won’t happen again in the Championship.
Adrian has been pretty good with his hands in the Hammers goal although he did not get many chances in the recently concluding season. He proved his mettle in the last few matches as he kept a clean sheet in three matches amongst the last five.
The Hammers are offering approximately £17m in cash which means Adrian is valued at about roughly £6m. It might seem a bit underpriced, but from Sunderland’s point of view, it seems a pretty good deal. If Pickford does leave, they certainly would need a goalkeeper and Adrian fits the bill perfectly. His ample experience in the Premier League would certainly help the Black Cats in their promotion battle.
Pickford is right behind Tom Heaton, who tops the charts in terms of saves in a single season which describes his capability. The English player boasts of brilliant reflex skills alongside a strong presence in the air in his box which are two most essential qualities of a very good shot stopper. Pickford has a contract till 2020 so Sunderland is in a bit of stable position right now. The keeper has been with the club since his childhood but might feel the need for a move as playing in the Championship could hurt his England career.
Adrian started the season as the number one choice in the Hammers’ goal but subsequent mistakes let his place slip to Darren Randolph who has been pretty decent in the Hammers goals. Adrian’s move would guarantee him a starting place surely at the Stadium of Light. However, Sunderland still could certainly negotiate the value of their current keeper as they will grind out the most suitable value for him.
