Southampton boss Tonda Eckert has confirmed that West Ham target Taylor Harwood-Bellis has “interest” from other clubs.

Speaking in his press conference on Friday, Eckert did not give any guarantees that the centre-back would stay at St Mary’s beyond the summer transfer window:

“There’s interest, and there is a conversation. I am talking every day to Taylor and at the moment, he is a Southampton player.”

Harwood-Bellis is a long-term transfer target for the Hammers, with the first links surfacing over three years ago, but his £30m price tag combined with interest from top-flight clubs has reduced the likelihood of the player making the switch to the London Stadium.

West Ham face fierce competition for the defender

Portuguese giants Benfica tried to sign Harwood-Bellis earlier in the summer, but they subsequently backed away from the deal.

Aston Villa have also had a bid rejected, and there are suggestions that the Europa League winners could return with another offer before the transfer deadline on Tuesday night.

Manchester United have also discussed signing Harwood-Bellis over the past few days too, so it seems Nuno Espirito Santo’s side will face an uphill battle in trying to secure his signature.

Who could be signed instead of Harwood-Bellis?

Everton’s Michael Keane seems to be the leading candidate. The 33-year-old has less than a year left on his contract at the Hill Dickinson Stadium, and he could be available for a relatively modest sum, especially compared to the Southampton star.

With Nuno having just two senior options in the middle of defence – Max Kilman and Konstantinos Mavropanos – with Jean-Clair Todibo expected to leave, the pressure is on Director of Player Recruitment Nils Koppen to bring in reinforcements for that position over the next few days.

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