West Ham are continuing efforts to bring in midfielders albeit in a frustrating manner, with ExWHUEmployee providing the latest in transfer news.

Following ou initial bid rejection from Southampton for Mateus Fernandes, Ex has reported that the following bid is also set for the same response, with a huge gap in valuation of the player evident as talks continue.

“West Ham and Southampton are still miles apart in their valuations of the player,” stated Ex. “The club have denied reports that they have bid £40m and have said that this is far too much for him but Southampton are said to be looking for around £50m for the player.

“It is thought that West Ham’s offer currently sits at £32m with a few clauses on top. Unless one party seriously budges it looks like a deal will be hard to conclude. We are looking at inserting various add ons to try and get closer to the price but there is still a long way to go.”

Ex has also advised the latest on other targets Andrey Santos of Chelsea and Ngal’ayel Mukau of Lille.

“The next target is Andrey Santos but it really seems that Chelsea do not want to sell the player and this is obviously a huge problem for the valuation too because it means they are not going to accept a reasonable figure,” said Ex.

“The third target we can confirm is Ngal’ayel Mukau of Lille the player had a very good game against us in our last preseason friendly and has been watched a number of times of the last few seasons.”

Our insider has also disclosed information on other options the club are looking at for the midfield this summer.

“A player whose interest we exclusively broke on the 5th June (which was around the time we revealed the interest in Diouf) this player is Soungoutou Magassa of Monaco,” stated Ex. “He is a French under 21 international and a defensive midfielder that can also play at centre back which gives West Ham options.

“Another player who we like and have been told could be available for £30m is Rennes midfielder Djaoui Cissé.

“Now there is a lot of interest in the French player which is why until recently my sources wanted the news kept quiet, as none had moved for him yet.

“It now seems that Inter Milan will make a move for the current France under 21s international. I believe a bid for the player could go in today but whether we will be able to beat the competition is unknown.

“Andy Diouf of Lens is another that we liked but he appears to be behind the above mentioned French players in the priority list.”

Other players who are also in the mix are Quinten Timber of Feyenoord, Marc Casadó of Barcelona and Middlesbrough’s Hayden Hackney.

“With regard to Timber of Feyenoord, there were some concerns regarding his injury record but the club seem prepared to take a risk and the player seems to fancy a move to London, where his twin Jurriën plays for Arsenal.

“Once more, as is the case with most of these signings there is interest else where for the player. He has clubs from all over the continent keeping an eye on him with the latest reported one being. Bayer Leverkusen of Germany.

“We then move over to Spain and Barcelona with Marc Casadó. Apparently the Spanish international has been told that he can leave the Catalan club but once more there is stiff competition for the player as you would expect and probably makes him unlikely.

“The final target is closer to home and perhaps slightly less glamour in Middlesbrough’s Hayden Hackney. He has been getting rave reviews for his performances in the North East and we are the latest admirer. He is thought to be available for around £20m.”

Ex has also advised that the club are likely to explore the loan market once the main pieces of business are done, with both Carney Chukwuemeka of Chelsea and the Yves Bissouma of Spurs options that are being considered.

“West Ham will speak to all these clubs and try and work out what the best deal and the likelihood of signing these players are,” added Ex. “In reality the clock is ticking and everyone is fully accepting that we must sign at least two new midfielders.”