Premier League giants West Ham have completed a £30m move for Southampton striker James Ward Prowse, as David Moyes gears up to land his top-rated recruit.

Last week, the Europa Conference league champions rejected a £25m bid from the Saints, and have now upped their latest offer to £27 million plus £3 million in bonuses. It is understood that both sides are hoping to finalise a deal before the weekend, with Saturday’s clash with Norwich in the Championship likely to be Ward Prowse’s final game for the club.

Ward Prowse was not included in the Saints’ squad for Tuesday night’s 3-1 loss to League Two side Gillingham, who were also without Liverpool striker Romeo Lavia. Prowse was a member of the Southampton side that was relegated from the top flight last season, despite managing nine goals and just four assists to help the club avoid the drop.

Ward-Prowse has spent his entire professional career at Southampton, having graduated from the club’s academy.

In his 13-year stay at St Mary’s, he has gone on to play 410 games, scoring 55 goals and providing 54 assists.

The arrival of the 28-year-old, who has 11 caps for England, comes as a massive boost to manager David Moyes, who has been frustrated over a failure to land his priority targets this summer.

There had been unrest at West Ham over a lack of transfer activity, although Moyes and Co have now agreed a £34m fee for Ajax’s Edson Alvarez, as they look to spend some of the £105m made from the sale of Declan Rice.

A move for Fulham’s Joao Palhinha has also not been ruled out, although the player’s injury – and £60m price tag – are thought to be deterrents with West Ham also admirers of Monaco’s Youssouf Fofana.