Hull City: Update emerges regarding Ipswich Town's pursuit of Jacob Greaves as £10m sticking point revealed | OneFootball

Ipswich Town have stepped up their interest in Hull City's Jacob Greaves and talks are ongoing between the two clubs.

Highlights

Hull City centre-back Jacob Greaves is attracting interest from Premier League new boys Ipswich Town, with Kieran McKenna's side stepping up their interest in the player they value at around £10 million, per The Athletic.

Both Aston Villa and Nottingham Forest were said to be keen on the Tigers’ academy graduate last summer, and his performances in the current campaign will have only added to his transfer value and a growing list of suitors in the top-flight.

Greaves, who graduated from the club's youth system and has been a key player for the Tigers in recent years, was a player who was always likely to generate plenty of interest. The centre-back was placed in the Championship Team of the Year and picked up a hat-trick of accolades at the club's awards evening.

However, the centre-back's time at the club could be coming to an end, with several teams showing interest in purchasing the 23-year-old. Recently, it was announced that Premier League newcomers Ipswich Town had made Greaves their number one target this summer in a bid to improve their side at the heart of defence.

According to The Athletic, the newly-promoted side will be one of several clubs eyeing a move for the defender this summer, and they still face competition for his signature. The Mirror reported back in March that Everton are preparing to lose Jarrad Branthwaite in this summer's transfer window, with Manchester United tracking the Englishman following his impressive displays at Goodison Park, whilst West Ham are also interested in Greaves.

The 23-year-old was born and raised in nearby Cottingham and has a contract with his boyhood club until the summer of 2026, highlighting that it will likely take a substantial offer from any interested party to prise him away from East Yorkshire in the summer. Evidently, interest is mounting after he cemented himself as one of the division’s brightest young talents. The centre-back featured 43 times in the league, contributing two goals and four assists, as Liam Rosenior oversaw a seventh place finish.

The transfer latest on Jacob Greaves

Greaves is an outstanding young centre-back, and someone Hull will be desperate to hang onto, and West Ham United's talks to recruit the centre-back stalling, according to Football Insider, will have given them hope. That's following initial reports had claimed that they were close to securing an agreement for the central defender.

The 23-year-old is tall, athletic, and comfortable in possession, whilst also being predominantly left-sided, and having featured at left-back too, highlighting that he is fairly versatile. Greaves is a Premier League player in waiting, who should be playing top-flight football sooner rather than later.

It has been reported in recent days that Hull will not stand in Greaves’ way should he push for a move, but their preference would be to keep him in the squad, and the latest is that Ipswich are stepping up their interest.

The Athletic's Adam Leventhal is reporting that Ipswich are now involved in active negotiations with Hull over the signing Greaves. Ipswich's starting position on potential fee is around £10 million but is said to be significantly below Hull's expectations.

Talks are now ongoing between the two clubs, whilst other sides are continuing to monitor the situation and could approach the defender themselves whilst no deal is done between Hull and the Suffolk-based outfit.

Jacob Greaves' importance to Hull

Greaves is left-footed and has the calmness and assuredness on the ball that has been key to helping Hull sustain possession and start attacks in recent seasons, while he isn’t afraid to take an opponent on and carry the ball out with his long strides when given the chance either.

He is one of the Tigers' highest-profile assets and one who has taken even greater strides forward in terms of his development and improvement as a player this season. He is the sort of player that can make things happen when building from the back, and, with age on his side he is only going to get better.

He is vastly experienced for his age, and an investment this summer will look like money well spent as he is very likely to become a Premier League regular in the next few years. He is also aerially dominant, which will help him to adapt to the rigours of top-flight football, should he move on this summer.