£150m Liverpool, Man City targets to be sold as Lopetegui given 'war chest'

West Ham United are considering the sales of players wanted by Liverpool and Manchester City as they look to give prospective new manager Julen Lopetegui a huge transfer budget, according to a report.

On Monday, West Ham confirmed that David Moyes will leave his role as manager at the end of the season. While the club did not announce a successor, they are understood to have agreed terms with Lopetegui, who has been a free agent since leaving Wolverhampton Wanderers in August.

In their desperate search for a new manager, Bayern Munich made a late play to try and snare the 57-year-old. But Lopetegui has surprisingly rejected their advances as he wants to manage in the Premier League again and is also looking to stick to his agreement with West Ham.

One of the main reasons Lopetegui walked away from Wolves is that he had become disillusioned with the club’s financial problems and lack of top signings. West Ham are hoping to avoid that issue by giving the Spaniard significant spending power, though two classy stars will have to leave first.

As per Football Insider, Lopetegui’s summer ‘war chest’ will stem from the departures of Mohammed Kudus and one of his team-mates.

Kudus being made available for transfer will put Liverpool on red alert, as they are known to be big admirers of the electric attacking midfielder.

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Kudus could move to Anfield this summer and become one of the first signings for new manager Arne Slot. The 23-year-old could then take up right wing from Mo Salah next summer, should Liverpool’s Egyptian hero finally achieve a long-awaited switch to Saudi Arabia.

Following Kudus’ great performances in England, West Ham hope to make a profit when he departs. After spending £38m to sign him from Ajax, West Ham are happy to sell as long as Liverpool offer around £68m.

West Ham transfers: Kudus and Paqueta could both leave

Kudus could be followed out of the London Stadium by playmaker Lucas Paqueta. The Brazil international has an £85m release clause in his West Ham contract which becomes active in June.

Paqueta has previously been linked with Newcastle United and teams in Saudi Arabia, though it is now Manchester City who are leading the charge.

Pep Guardiola urged City chiefs to pursue the creative midfielder last summer and he will once again push for an agreement to be struck in the coming weeks.

This update comes after it emerged last week that West Ham expect Kudus, Paqueta and Edson Alvarez to all push for big moves this summer.

Lopetegui would have loved to work with those stars, but their departures will give him the necessary funds to sign the players he wants.

Given Lopetegui’s extensive La Liga knowledge – he has previously managed sides including Real Madrid and Sevilla – it would not be a surprise if some top Spanish talents arrived in East London this summer.

READ MORE – Man City transfers: Five players to sell this summer, including signing Guardiola completely misjudged

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