Exclusive: West Ham star Guido Rodriguez opens talks to join Gremio
Brazilian side Gremio are in talks to sign West Ham midfielder Guido Rodriguez, sources have told Football Insider.
Argentine midfielder Rodriguez finds himself well down the pecking order at West Ham, making just five appearances in the Premier League this term.
Juventus have been linked with Rodriguez, but now Gremio are hoping to bring the Argentine back to South America.
Rodriguez is in the final six months of his contract and West Ham are keen to offload him in this month’s transfer window.
The 31-year-old is ready to move on in the second half of the season as he is still hoping to earn a spot in Lionel Scaloni’s Argentina World Cup squad.
West Ham have been trying to get rid of Guido Rodriguez for months
Rodriguez’s move to West Ham from Real Betis in the summer of 2024 has not been a success, and he was heavily linked with a departure from the London Stadium over the summer.
The midfielder was linked with a return move to Betis for much of the pre-season period, but ultimately remained in East London beyond the deadline with West Ham unable to secure a replacement for him.
Rodriguez has started just two Premier League games so far this season, as he has remained firmly out of favour despite Nuno Espirito Santo arriving in place of Graham Potter in the dugout.
The negotiations with Gremio look set to provide the Hammers with the perfect chance to move him on this winter, and potentially even secure a small profit on their initial free transfer.
A January departure would also allow the capital club to clear Rodriguez’s wages from their desks ahead of the final few weeks of the window, which could potentially allow them to invest that money elsewhere in the squad.
Jarrod Bowen to follow Rodriguez out of the door
Former Everton and Aston Villa chief executive Keith Wyness told Football Insider earlier this week that Jarrod Bowen is among a group of West Ham players who will leave if they are relegated to the Championship.
The former boardroom chief has backed the likes of the club captain and Lucas Paqueta to jump ship in the summer if the club suffers relegation, which appears to be an increasingly likely possibility.
Bowen’s England aspirations will mean he has to be playing top-flight football, while Paqueta’s likely departure would leave a major rebuild in the offing.
Championship football would be catastrophic for a club that has ambitions of progressing to try and challenge the elite, and as a result, it is clear that they have little room for error in the January market.