West Ham United are trailing Crystal Palace in the race to sign Napoli centre-back Nikola Maksimovic according to a report from Area Napoli.
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The Hammers and the Eagles are both in the market for a new centre-back this summer.
Funds could be tight at the London Stadium and Selhurst Park, however.
So David Moyes and Roy Hodgson will have to be thrifty in their transfer business.
Enter Nikola Maksimovic.
The 29-year-old will be out of contract with Napoli in the summer.
So his availability on a free transfer will undoubtedly appeal to both West Ham and Crystal Palace.
There’s bad news for the Hammers, however.
West Ham trailing Crystal Palace in Nikola Maksimovic race?
The Eagles are the team who are looking ‘particularly closely’ at signing the 25-capped Serbia international.
Maksimovic is a top class defender, and missing out on him to Palace would be a big blow for the Hammers to stomach.
The seasoned veteran is an old school, no-nonsense defender. He is fairly accomplished with the ball at his feet as well.
In 17 Serie A outings this term, Maksimovic has averaged 1.1 tackles, 1.2 interceptions and 2.6 clearances per game. He has also won an average of 2.1 aerial duals per match. The centre-back averages 56.5 passes per game with a supremely impressive completion rate of 92.2% (Who Scored).
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Signing Maksimovic for nothing is a deal that West Ham should be all over this summer.
It appears as though Crystal Palace could be ready to throw a spanner in the works, however.
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