Blow for West Ham as Newcastle allegedly enter the race to sign Franck Kessie

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According to a report from Milan Live, Newcastle have entered the race to sign alleged West Ham target Franck Kessie. And with the Magpies’ impending new financial muscle, that could be really bad news for the Hammers.

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The Evening Standard claimed that West Ham were actually offered Kessie on loan in January.

And Italian media outlet Calcio Mercato suggested that the Hammers may go back in for the 23-year-old in the summer.

David Moyes will be keen to bolster his central midfield ranks this summer. Especially with Carlos Sanchez set to leave and Mark Noble on the verge of turning 33. In addition to that, Declan Rice has been heavily linked with an exit from the London Stadium.

Race heating up for Milan star

Kessie would be ideal for West Ham.

But Milan Live are now claiming that Newcastle are in the race to sign the Ivory Coast international. Steve Bruce is allegedly a big fan of the midfielder.

And that is a big problem for the east London outfit.

The Toon are on the verge of being taken over by a Saudi-backed consortium in a £300million deal (The Sun). And they will undoubtedly have more spending power than the Hammers.

Kessie stats

The 23-year-old has racked up one goal and one assist in 23 Serie A outings for Milan this season (Who Scored).

In those appearances, the Ivorian has averaged 1.7 tackles and 0.7 interceptions per game. He has also averaged 41 passes per game during that period, with an incredibly impressive completion rate of 88.1% (Who Scored).

With his tenacious and robust playing style, Kessie seems to be ideally suited to the Premier League.

Calico Mercato claims that AC Milan could sell the midfielder for around €40 million (£36 million).

That would represent decent value for whichever club wins the race for his signature.

West Ham will will certainly have their work cut-out if they want to bring the Ivorian to the London Stadium, however, with Newcastle now thought to be in the race to sign him as well.