West Ham United and Manchester United both want to sign Fiorentina centre-back Nikola Milenkovic this summer according to a report from Calcio Mercato.
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And that obviously means that the Hammers have their work cut-out if they are to sign the 23-year-old.
West Ham boss David Moyes has been linked with a move to bring the 28-capped Serbia international to the London Stadium since January (Gianluca Di Marzio).
And with Milenkovic now refusing to sign a new deal, Calcio Mercato reckon that the Hammers are sniffing around the towering central defender once again.
West Ham face Manchester United competition for Nikola Milenkovic
Calcio Mercato claim that Man United want to sign the Fiorentina ace with the Serie A outfit looking for around £26 million for the Serbian.
In fact, it is claimed that Man United and West Ham have already made contact with the player’s agent.
It will clearly be almost mission impossible for us to beat the Red Devils to Milenkovic’s signature.
If Ole Gunnar Solskjaer makes a concrete move to bring the 23-year-old to Old Trafford, our hopes of signing him may well be dead in the water.
And missing out on Milenkovic would be a big blow for the Hammers to stomach.
The classy centre-back would be an exceptional addition for us.
In 31 Serie A appearances for Fiorentina this season, the Serbian has scored three goals and registered one assist. In those outings, he has averaged 1.5 tackles, 1.4 interceptions, 3.5 clearances and 0.9 blocks per match. The 23-year-old has won an average of 3 aerial duals per game. He also has an 85.8% pass completion rate from an average of 48.4 passes per match (Who Scored).
If West Ham manage to qualify for the Champions League, we may well be able to convince the Serbian into moving to the London Stadium.
The pull of Manchester United may well be too hard to resist for Milenkovic, however.
And if Solskjaer wins the race for the Fiorentina ace, it will very much be West Ham’s loss and Man United’s gain.
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