West Ham & Southampton Considering Moves for Liverpool's Marko Grujić
By Tom Gott
West Ham United and Southampton are both expected to make loan bids for Liverpool midfielder Marko Grujić before the end of the transfer window.
Grujić, who has spent the last two years out on loan, is yet to make a matchday squad for any of Liverpool's Premier League games this season, but he has seen minutes in both of the Reds' Carabao Cup games.
Elimination from that competition at the hands of Arsenal has left Grujić's chances of minutes this season in tatters, and according to the Daily Mail, both West Ham and Southampton are considering taking advantage of the situation.
Loan bids are expected to arrive in the coming hours and it remains to be seen whether Jürgen Klopp decides to pull the trigger on another temporary move.
It was thought that Liverpool would prefer to find a permanent buyer in the hope of raising some extra transfer funds, but with such little time left in the transfer window, the Reds may have no choice but to accept a loan exit.
West Ham and Southampton are both believed to see Grujić as an alternative to Chelsea midfielder Ruben Loftus-Cheek, who is expected to leave Stamford Bridge on loan in his quest to return to match fitness following an Achilles injury he picked up in May 2019.
Of the two, it's West Ham whose chances of landing Loftus-Cheek are greater. Southampton may struggle to afford the Englishman's wages, but the Hammers are expected to be able to put together an acceptable offer.
Their cause could be boosted if West Ham can find a way to cut ties with Jack Wilshere and his £100,000-a-week contract.
Ideally, David Moyes hopes to find a buyer for the Englishman, but there is an acceptance that his injury record doesn't really make him the most desirable asset - especially with those wages - so West Ham will look to agree a pay-off with Wilshere if needs be.
