Haji Wright, a 27-year-old American striker and current Coventry City star, has become an unexpected protagonist in the transfer market. According to a report by The Telegraph, the club that currently leads the English Championship has set a price of 200 million to negotiate with West Ham United, which showed interest in signing him. The figure, which is equivalent to almost $270 million, even surpasses the historic transfer of Neymar to PSG in 2017, an immediate reference when talking about multi-million dollar deals.
Naturally, the move does not seem realistic. Nobody in European football expects such a payment to occur, but the message is clear: Coventry do not want to part easily with their goalscorer, and if someone intends to take him away, they will have to do so under extraordinary conditions. Wright, who has eight goals in 18 games this season, is a key part of the sporting project and the aspiration for direct promotion to the Premier League.
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West Ham want him, but Coventry make clear his value
West Ham are in a difficult sporting situation, handling the market with the urgency of strengthening a squad that is struggling to get out of the bottom of the table. In this scenario, Wright presents himself as an attractive option: physical strength, presence in the box and a solid goalscoring record. However, Coventry’s response was blunt and strategic: to shield their player with a prohibitive figure that, rather than inviting negotiation, disincentivises any serious attempt to buy… at least in the short term.
That does not mean the London club is giving up altogether. They could try a realistic offer – in the region of 40-50 million – to really gauge Coventry’s final stance. But for now, the Championship leader’s position is firm: Wright is fundamental both sportingly and symbolically.
A striker who is also fighting for his place in the US national team.
Beyond the noise surrounding the transfer, Wright is going through an important personal moment. He is looking to establish himself in the US national team, where he hopes to secure a place in the squad for the next major international tournament, probably as an alternative to the starting striker Folarin Balogun. His two goals against Australia in a recent friendly revived his profile and reinforced the perception that he is at his highest point of footballing maturity.
Today, the market is watching him, West Ham are insisting and Coventry are smiling: they have their goalscorer, his value is rising and they have absolute control of the board.
