Maja could go West … with Cats set to profit

West Ham United and West Brom are set to do battle over Bordeaux star Josh Maja – with Sunderland watching on with interest.

L’Équipe have reported that the Premier League duo have made contact over the possibility of signing the 22-year-old striker.

The Hammers are looking to recruit another forward this month following the sale of Sebastien Haller.

Maja knows West Ham boss David Moyes from when the pair were at Sunderland, and Sam Allardyce from his spell on Wearside.

If they were to make a move then that would be good news for Sunderland, who sold Maja in January 2019 and included a sell-on clause as part of the deal.

The sell-on clause is understood to be 10 per cent. Maja has previously been valued at upwards of £10million.

He scored 16 goals for Sunderland before leaving Wearside having rejected the chance of a new deal.

His exit proved a huge blow for the Black Cats’ automatic promotion hopes, with replacement Will Grigg failing to hit the same heights.

Maja hit the headlines last year with his exit a key storyline of the second series of Sunderland 'Til I Die, released on Netflix.

Maja’s fine form and subsequent exit took prominence in the early episodes of season two.

The transfer window for English clubs closes at 11pm on Monday night.

Sunderland are looking to sign two players before the window, a left-back and a forward, with Lee Johnson aiming to bolster his options ahead of a busy second half of the campaign and the club battling for promotion.

Josh Maja playing for Bordeaux. Picture via Getty Images