West Ham United will 'test the water' to see if they can land Fulham midfielder Joao Palhinha this window as David Moyes looks to replace Declan Rice, according to journalist Dean Jones.

What's the latest transfer news involving Joao Palhinha?

According to The Daily Mail, Fulham have slapped an incredible £90 million price tag on Palhinha this summer as they look to ward off interest from suitors in the £50k-a-week ace.

West Ham United are believed to be one side that are keen on the Portugal international; however, Fulham are said to have benchmarked their demands against the Hammers' £100 million asking price for club captain Rice.

Football Insider have claimed that Liverpool, Manchester United, Chelsea and Bayern Munich have all monitored Palhinha following his impressive debut campaign in English football, though they are looking towards alternative targets.

The Sun via TEAMtalk indicate that Tottenham Hotspur manager Ange Postecoglou is an admirer of Palhinha and has urged Spurs' chiefs to make a move to acquire the former Sporting Lisbon man.

Palhinha was an influential figure for Fulham during last term and was the most frequent tackler in the Premier League, winning 147 challenges in total.

Speaking to Football FanCast, journalist Jones thinks that West Ham United will try to test Fulham's resolve to see whether a swoop to try and land Palhinha is attainable.

Jones told FFC: "They'll go and test the water for Palhinha as well, I fully expect them to go and do that, but Fulham, if they do that, will give West Ham a taste of their own medicine. West Ham have just held out for £105 million for Declan Rice and Fulham are not going to cave in on Palhinha's valuation and that's why there's little leaks that they'll look to for £90 million and it was just to know to West Ham that you've lost your best player, we're not about to lose ours."

Would Joao Palhinha be a good addition for West Ham United this summer?

In light of West Ham captain Rice closing in on a move to Arsenal, the Irons will need a suitable replacement and bringing in Palhinha would be an exciting addition at the London Stadium.

Last term, the 27-year-old made 40 appearances in all competitions for Fulham, registering four goals in the process, as per Transfermarkt.

WhoScored show how monstrous Palhinha was in the tackle during 2022/23, winning an average of 4.2 challenges per match in the Premier League.

Intriguingly, the Portugal international also excelled aerially in comparison to his positional peers across Europe's top five divisions, coming out on top in around 2.06 duels per 90 minutes across the last 365 days, putting him in the eighth percentile for this metric, as per FBRef.

Consistent displays on the field for Fulham throughout the season earned Palhinha a SofaScore average match rating of 7/10 in the English top flight, signifying that he could be the man to fill Rice's large boots at the club in the engine room if the Hammers were to land Palhinha this summer.