Credit: Imago

Harri Burton

Thu 21 May 2026 17:45, UK

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Crysencio Summerville will not be the only big-name star pushing to leave should West Ham United be relegated from the Premier League this season.

That is according to former Manchester City financial adviser Stefan Borson, who exclusively told Football Insider that the winger could be followed out of the London Stadium by at least two of his teammates.

Nuno Espirito Santo was appointed to keep the Hammers afloat in the Premier League, but with just one game of the season remaining and his team two points adrift, their demise appears likely.

West Ham’s transfer chiefs are unable to plan appropriately until the club’s league status is confirmed for next season, but either way, they will have a huge task on their hands when it comes to keeping stars.

Jarrod Bowen and Mateus Fernandes could follow Crysencio Summerville

With Tottenham only needing a single point from their clash against Everton on Sunday, 24 May, the Hammers are edging ever-closer to joining Burnley and Wolves in the Championship.

It is already believed that West Ham could lose Jarrod Bowen for £35million amid interest from Chelsea. The captain and Mateus Fernandes may already have an eye on the exit doors in East London.

Speaking exclusively to Football Insider, Borson discussed the potential outgoings this summer, with the Irons needing to raise £100million in sales should they be playing football in the second tier next term.

“They more or less said as much as that in their accounts that they were going to have to sell players. As ever with these situations, you’ve got what you might want to do and what you have to do,” Borson said.

“If you’ve got shareholders who are prepared to fund losses or to subsidise underperformance, then you can be more relaxed, and you can pay less. You can sell less. I think in this situation, a lot of the players are going to want to leave.

“The big players, the ones that have got value, the Fernandes and Bowens, as we said, and one or two others that have got value, Summerville, for example, they’re going to want to go.

“Then there’s the question of whether £100million is about getting the cash, the £100 million cash in, effectively getting a refund for some of these players, or whether it’s about profit.

“Someone like Somerville probably costs £40m, I can’t remember exactly, but let’s say £30m-£40m. What’s he going to go for? It might not be that much different to what they paid.

“There’s a little bit of profit, but it’s mainly about actually just getting more cash through the door that will allow the running costs of the club in the season in the championship.”

What other problems will West Ham face in the Championship?

The main problem that Borson believes the Hammers will face is trying to fill the London Stadium after relegation. Of course, that would see the club take a further financial hit in the Championship.

“They should be able to get straight back, keeping the carcass of whatever has been relegated, plus the wage bill that they’ve got, plus the fact they’ve got a massive stadium,” he told Football Insider.

“Clearly, it’s going to be hard to fill 62,000 seats. We’ve never seen a stadium of that size in the championship before. So it’s going to be very challenging, I think, to fill it.

“But if they’ve got good momentum and they’re playing good football and they’re winning games, you know, and they can bring some momentum back, then who knows? That’s going to be their challenge.”

Should Nuno still be in charge for the 2026-27 campaign, he could play a huge role in keeping supporters interested, especially if the team make a strong charge for a return straight back to the Premier League.