Hammer blow

West Ham may be latest club to take an interest in United star Lascelles:

NEWCASTLE United captain Jamaal Lascelles may not have done enough to earn a place in Gareth Southgate’s England squad but he is attracting interest from a host of the Magpies’ Premier League rivals.

Chelsea, Arsenal, Liverpool and Everton are understood to be longterm admirers of the centre-back, while reports claim West Ham United are also considering a summer move for the Newcastle skipper.

It has been suggested the Hammers are preparing a £15m offer for the 24-year-old – if the east London club can survive the drop.

Rafa Benitez is a huge admirer of Lascelles, who he handed the armband to during the summer of 2016, and the defender has improved immeasurably under the Spaniard’s tutelage.

However, doubts still persist over Benitez’s long-term future at St James’ Park, while Lascelles is keen to earn a call up to the Three Lions’ squad and may soon wonder if he must move in order to realise those ambitions.

What is more, Lascelles is understood to earn around £35,000 a week on Tyneside – a figure which the Hammers would likely double if he was to head to the capital. Newcastle are keen to keep hold of a prized asset who still has more than five years left to run on the contract extension he signed less than 12 months ago. Yet the Magpies may need to offer Lascelles improved terms once more if they are to retain the services of their captain. Anyway, the report’s claim West Ham will make a £15m bid for Lascelles will likely be seen as derisory by Newcastle, who would not countenance discussions over a sale at such a price.