The news source stated on their website on April 11 that the West London club has not decreased its demands in spite of rumours that Toney would be available this summer for as cheap as £30 million [Florian Plettenberg, 10 April].

The England international is also being pursued by Arsenal and Chelsea; West Ham will only move for the 28-year-old if the two London-based powerhouses decide against a deal. “If Toney decides to leave the club in the upcoming months, sources have told SportsLens that he is still in the £60 million range,” they stated.

“West Ham United, Tottenham, and Manchester United could show interest in Toney if Arsenal and Chelsea do not make a move for him, but none of those teams would look to compete with the Gunners or Blues.”

Given that the problem has persisted for a number of years, the London Stadium is obviously in dire need of a new striker this summer.

For the number nine position, West Ham has spent money on Sebastien Haller, Danny Ings, and Gianluca Scamacca in recent years. However, all three have underperformed, and it appears probable that Ings will leave the team this summer along with the other two.

Since Michail Antonio, who is already 34 years old, has had trouble staying healthy this season and may go in the summer, Jarrod Bowen has been used frequently as a central striker.

Toney is a top-class centre-forward and has Premier League experience, and with the level of performance he has turned in at Brentford you would expect him to even improve further with the quality of Lucas Paqueta, Bowen and Mohammed Kudus around him.

However, it’s certain that Toney wants Champions League football, so if those major teams are in the running, West Ham would be better off looking elsewhere and not wasting their time.