West Ham plotting to land further Ipswich Town transfer blow for £20m Middlesbrough star Hayden Hackney | OneFootball

The Irons are weighing up a swoop for the Boro midfielder.

West Ham United are mulling over a potential transfer swoop for Middlesbrough star Hayden Hackney, potentially landing Ipswich Town a second blow in their attempts to sign the midfielder.

With the 1 September transfer deadline looming ever closer on the horizon, clubs across English football's top two divisions are working hard to put some final touches on their squads.

Ipswich Town are no different, as Kieran McKenna's side look to win an instant return to the top-flight this season.

Chuba Akpom, Jens Cajuste, Ashley Young and Azor Matusiwa are some of the new arrivals at Portman Road this summer, but there's one player of which there is no secret they would love to bring to Suffolk: Middlesbrough's Hayden Hackney.

West Ham weighing up Hayden Hackney swoop to strike Boro deal ahead of Ipswich Town

Football League World exclusively revealed this week that the Tractor Boys were preparing a fresh move for Hackney ahead of the transfer deadline.

This comes after Town saw what would have been a Championship record £20m+ deal fail, due to the player himself rejecting a move to Portman Road in favour of remaining with his boyhood Boro.

As such, news of Ipswich's re-emergence in the Hackney race understandably saw many Town supporters flooded with excitement over the potential for their club to once again potentially add one of the Championship's standout midfielders to their squad.

However, cold water may well be about to be thrown on that fire once again this summer, as news of long-awaited Premier League interest in the Middlesbrough maestro appears to finally have arrived.

That's because a report from FLW's sister site GIVEMESPORT on Tuesday evening has revealed that West Ham United are weighing up whether to lodge a bid of their own in an attempt to win Hackney's signature.

It's stated that Irons boss Graham Potter is very keen to bolster his midfield options, and United indeed have the 23-year-old in their crosshairs, and is a player they've been tracking for a considerable amount of time.

GMS state that whilst West Ham have more expensive and more established players on their shortlist too, Hackney is considered to fit the bill for them as a cheaper option, and of course, would also add another homegrown player to their squad too.

Middlesbrough could be more inclined to sell Hackney now as opposed to when Ipswich lodged first approach

Since Hackney turned down the chance to sign for Ipswich at the beginning of the month, Middlesbrough have been able to significantly bolster their midfield options.

In the days prior to Hackney's Ipswich refusal, Boro completed a deal to sign 20-year-old Frenchman Abdoulaye Kante from Troyes, and in his first three outings for the Teessiders, he looks to be a player with plenty of talent and potential.

If that wasn't enough, Rob Edwards has just potentially landed one of the biggest coups of the Championship summer transfer window.

That's because Manchester City teenage wonderkid Sverre Nypan - who City have only just splashed out £12.5m to sign from Rosenborg in July - has penned a season-long loan deal at the Riverside Stadium.

Therefore, the addition of these two quality central midfielders, coupled with the fact Boro already have proven performers in the middle of the park such as Aidan Morris and Finn Azaz, Boro's midfield looks to perhaps be their strongest unit - even potentially without Hackney in the fold.

It's always been acknowledged that Hackney would much prefer a Premier League move over a Championship one this summer, as proven by his Ipswich transfer stance, and now with a beefed-up midfield group, West Ham could well find Middlesbrough easier to strike a deal with for their star academy graduate.