West Ham had agreed to pay 'huge' loan fee to Chelsea
Monday 5 October 2020 23:48, UK
Chelsea defender Fikayo Tomori called off a season-long loan move to West Ham minutes before the transfer window closed.
With a move away from Stamford Bridge having failed to materialise for fellow centre-back Antonio Rudiger, Chelsea were willing to allow Tomori to spend the season with their London rivals.
However, with a deal between the two clubs - that involved a 'huge' loan fee - agreed, Tomori decided just 10 minutes before the transfer window closed at 11pm on Monday that he would prefer to stay and fight for his place at Chelsea.
West Ham had been looking to strengthen defensively despite having recorded emphatic back-to-back Premier League victories - with clean sheets - against Wolves and Leicester.
David Moyes' side had previously been linked with Marseille centre-back Duje Caleta-Car, with the Hammers having lodged a £20m bid for the Croatia defender over the weekend.
Frank Lampard will now have five centre-backs in his squad this season, with summer signing Thiago Silva, Kurt Zouma and Andreas Christensen currently appearing to be ahead of Tomori and Rudiger in the pecking order.
Rudiger had appeared the more likely departure on deadline day, but a deal was never agreed despite interest from Tottenham, Paris Saint-Germain and AC Milan.
While Rudiger has yet to make an appearance for Chelsea this season, Tomori has started both of Chelsea's Carabao Cup ties, and made a Premier League appearance as a substitute against Liverpool.
Tomori is understood to be highly regarded by Lampard, who he spent the 2018/19 season on loan under in the Championship at Derby.
The 22-year-old was called up to the England squad on two separate occasions last season, making his debut in a 4-0 victory in Kosovo, but has been left out of each of Gareth Southgate's selections since.
