The Wests Tigers don't just want their former half Mitchell Moses back in Concord, they want him back there now.

Moses, who hasn't lined up for the Tigers since mid-2017, is free to negotiate with rival clubs for the 2024 NRL season as Canterbury prepares a monster offer for the halfback, however, his former club is hoping to snare the No. 7 a little sooner than that.

The 28-year-old is fresh off his maiden Grand Final appearance as well as a quarter-final appearance at the World Cup whilst captaining Lebanon, and will go close to a seven-figure annual salary on his next contract.

SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA - APRIL 22: Mitchell Moses of the Eels celebrates scoring a try during the round 6 NRL match between the Parramatta Eels and Wests Tigers at Bankwest Stadium on April 22, 2019 in Sydney, Australia. (Photo by Mark Kolbe/Getty Images)

It's believed that the Wests Tigers' ambitious recruitment is the key reason the Sydney club hasn't announced the signature of English international John Bateman for the 2023 season as of yet.

Bateman poured fuel on the fire when posting on Instagram earlier this week, posting a photo from an airplane alongside his teenage daughter with the caption 'outta here', however, the pair have since revealed a family holiday in Los Angeles.

Bateman's partner Amy Reilly and their infant son relocated back to Australia midway through the World Cup, with an announcement on their future seemingly imminent as soon as their Californian holiday, where Reilly has joined them, wraps up.

Channel 7 journalist Michelle Bishop spoke on radio network SEN about Moses' immediate future.

“The Wests Tigers have actually agreed to pay Bateman's transfer fee from the UK. That's all happening,” Bishop said on SEN 1170 Breakfast on Wednesday morning.

“The Mitchell Moses situation could be the thing that's holding it up.

“The Tigers are going all guns blazing and they actually want Moses for 2023.

“They need to leave some cash in the cap for that to become a reality.

“Both Bateman and Moses share the same player manager, so they clearly hold the trump card in this one.

“Nervous times for Eels fans.”

SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA - OCTOBER 02: Reed Mahoney and Mitchell Moses of the Eels look on during the 2022 NRL Grand Final match between the Penrith Panthers and the Parramatta Eels at Accor Stadium on October 02, 2022, in Sydney, Australia. (Photo by Cameron Spencer/Getty Images)

Moses is also close with Luke Brooks as well as Parramatta teammate Nathan Brown, who debuted for the Tigers in the same game as Brooks in 2013, and is rumoured to rejoin the club in 2023 after the Eels gave him permission to negotiate an immediate exit.

The Daily Telegraph's David Riccio echoed Bishop's statement on the same program, confirming his doubts over Moses' future in a blue-and-gold jersey.

“I received a call that suggested there is no way in the world that Mitchell Moses will be there in 2024,” Riccio said on SEN 1170 Breakfast.

“If I'm a betting man, I don't believe that Mitchell Moses will be there in 2024.

“How the Eels try to juggle Dylan Brown, Mitchell Moses, Clint Gutherson, Reagan Campbell-Gillard, Junior Paulo, Josh Hodgson and Ryan Matterson into a salary cap is going to be a struggle."

Moses is expected to honour his 2023 contract with Parramatta, still, anything beyond that is up in the air as the halfback mulls over his future.

One certainty is that if Moses does return to Concord in 2024, he'll have John Bateman running off his hip, though it's no clearer who would partner him in the halves, with Adam Doueihi and Luke Brooks both free to negotiate with rivals for 2024 as well.