West Ham negotiating £12m deal to complete two-for-one second signing says journalist

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West Ham are deep in negotiations over a bargain £12 million deal to land a versatile star as their second signing of the summer, according to a journalist.

Talks are said to be active with the player’s camp as the Hammers look to accelerate their window after a slow start.

West Ham are on the verge of unveiling young, powerful Senegal left wingback El Hadji Malick Diouf as their first permanent signing of the Graham Potter era.

It has taken six weeks of the extended summer transfer window for the Hammers to get active and comes hot on the heels of the Mohammed Kudus sale to Spurs for £54.5m.

Diouf set to become Potter’s first West Ham signing

Diouf, 20, is likely to be announced by West Ham on Tuesday having flown to London on Monday for a medical.

The Irons struck a deal worth £19m – plus a possible further £3m in add-ons – with Slavia Prague.

Although some bad news about West Ham’s deal for Diouf emerged yesterday, the move has breathed new life into the club’s hopes for next season.

Especially given the major shift in the club’s recruitment philosophy, with young, dynamic players being targeted.

Now West Ham have some transfer funds and momentum, Potter and head of recruitment Kyle Macaulay want to run with it.

The Hammers are targeting at least one striker, two midfielders, a goalkeeper and a centre-back this summer.

The new season is now just four weeks away this weekend and the window slams shut in less than seven weeks.

So there is no time to waste for the Hammers with plenty more work to do if Potter is to transform the team.

West Ham negotiating £12m deal to complete second signing

With Diouf on the verge of being announced pending no red flags in his medical, another defender could follow behind.

Because West Ham are currently negotiating a £12m deal to complete a two-for-one second signing according to a journalist.

Although the player in question was also heavily linked when Julen Lopetegui and Tim Steidten were making signings last summer – suggesting the claim could be agent-led.

According to Weekend Sports’ Sébastien Vidal, talks are active with Girona for the Hammers to sign versatile centre-back Arnau Martinez.

The 22-year-old certainly fits the profile of player Potter and Macaulay have been linked with this summer.

But Martinez was also targeted by ex Hammers boss Lopetegui last August, raising question marks over who is pushing the signing.

Although it is of course possible Martinez is also a player Potter and Macaulay like hence the fresh links.

Vidal claims talks are ongoing and that West Ham are in ‘direct negotiations with Martinez’s camp’.

The reporter says the Hammers are yet to make an official bid, but the Girona centre-back and right-back is ‘highly appreciated’.

It comes after links to Martinez resurfaced last week and the fee is estimated to be around £12m.

Martinez ticks several boxes for Potter in terms of his age, athleticism and versatility.

Two-for-one Martinez fits Potter profile but was linked last year

After Vladimir Coufal was released, West Ham have no senior back-up for Aaron Wan-Bissaka.

So Martinez would kill two birds with one stone in that regard.

At six foot tall, Martinez is not short by any means – but would not be the most towering of Premier League centre-backs.

However, his supreme ability on the ball makes him the perfect centre-back to start attacks out of defence.

It should be noted that the reported Hammers target spends most of his time starting at right-back for Girona.

Although the Spaniards often shift to a 4-1-4-1 or even a 3-4-3 shape during matches – something Potter was known for during spells at previous clubs.

The website One Versus One has compared Martinez to the likes of Trent Alexander-Arnold and comes off very favourably.

Surprisingly, Martinez’s ‘passing and ball progression’ is over 85 per cent, some 11 per cent better than Alexander-Arnold’s.

Most of the Catalonian’s defensive stats are better than the ex Liverpool man’s too.