West Ham may lose central defender Matthew Upson in the January transfer window according to The Times. The cash-strapped London side are concerned that the player, who is 31 and only has 18 months to run on his contract, is losing his resale value. Zola has been told that he has final say on transfers, but if a reasonable bid was to come in for the England international it is likely that they will sell him rather than lose Carlton Cole or Robert Green who have also attracted interest recently.
Upson was keen on a move to a Champions League side over the summer and changed his agent last year in order to facilitate such a move. Unfortunately Liverpool were unable to raise the funds and a move to Fiorentina failed to materialise. West Ham are hopeful that there is some interest from Tottenham who are in need of a fit, experienced centre-back while Manchester United may also be interested given their defensive injury crisis. Roberto Mancini may also be interested in Upson if first-choice target Giorgio Chiellini is not convinced about a move to Eastlands.
The loss of Upson is likely to damage West Ham’s fight for survival as they lack quality in defence with the injury-prone Gabbidon and unconvincing Da Costa the only other options along with young James Tomkins. Zola does not want to lose Upson but the financial situation at the club may take the decision out of his hands as the problems at West Ham worsen.
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