West Ham and Brighton are competing for CJ Egan-Riley. Brighton sold Jan Paul van Hecke and let Adam Webster depart over the summer. The former Burnley player is not currently favoured at Marseille, 12 months after joining the Ligue 1 club. Southampton and Ipswich Town were also linked with the 23-year-old centre-back earlier this summer. The defender has a contract with the Ligue 1 side until June 2029, but it is believed that Marseille are open to his sale this summer.

Brighton were prepared to offer CJ Egan-Riley an opportunity to return to England's top flight, and West Ham United were also still interested in the centre-back. West Ham have been linked with the 23-year-old for a long time and had planned a move in the summer of 2025 when his contract with Burnley was ending, but the former Manchester City youth player, who holds both English and Irish nationality, chose to join Marseille instead. A potential move back to England follows a season where Egan-Riley was limited to 11 Ligue 1 appearances for the French club. The centre-back, who has been capped three times by England's U21 side, is under contract with Marseille until June 2029 and has a current market value of €9.00m, according to Transfermarkt.