West Ham’s task becomes clear as Juventus open talks and director confirms £22m bids

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When descriptions such as ‘stunning’ or ‘dazzling’ are swirling around young, highly-exciting central defender, it should come as no surprise that West Ham United are not his only suitors from the Premier League and beyond.

West Ham United, Brentford, Inter Milan, AC Milan, Atalanta, Roma, Juventus, the list goes on.

Presumably, the idea behind that reported £15.8 million bid was so that the Hammers could get an early jump on the competition.

According to Gazzetta dello Sport, however, Lecce are demanding a fee far in excess of the sum on offer from the London Stadium outfit. Pantaleo Corvino, one of the most experienced and respected technical directors in Italian football, confirms that bigger offers have arrived for young Tiago Gabriel already.

Offers in the region of £22 million.

So not only will it require a much larger offer – reportedly, West Ham hope to reunite Tiago Gabriel with Mateus Fernandes, his Portugal Under-21 captain – but it will also require some very nifty negotiating.

Because, as Tuttosport now explain, the size of the task facing Nuno Espirito Santo and co cannot be understated. Not with Juventus hot on Gabriel’s heels.

West Ham United face Serie A battle as Tiago Gabriel is ‘perfect’ for Juventus

Tuttosport claim that Tiago Gabriel ‘fits the bill perfectly’ when it comes to January signings at the Allianz Stadium.

For instance, Gabriel would not take up a spot in Juventus’ already stacked senior roster, due to the fact he is only 20 years of age.

In Serie A, clubs are only allowed to register 25 players over the age of 22. If Gabriel was a couple of years older, Juventus would have had to sacrifice one of their current roster in order to make room.

Tuttosport, who describe Gabriel’s performance in the recent 1-0 away win at Fiorentina as ‘stunning’, add that the Bianconeri have ‘initiated discussions’ with the youngster’s representatives over the last few days.

Juve’s scouts have also provided glowing reports of a centre-back who was nothing short of ‘dazzling’ as he shut down Italy centre-forward Moise Kean during that triumph at the Stadio Artemio Franchi.

Charlie Cresswell an option but Nuno suffers Alexsandro blow

While Hammers News can confirm that Nuno wants a striker signed in January, particularly because Niclas Fullkrug is expected to leave, recent signs suggest that a new centre-half is also high on the agenda.

Links with Toulouse ace Charlie Cresswell will not go away. The alleged interest in Tiago Gabriel, meanwhile, came out just days after Lille and Brazil ace Alexsandro suffered an injury which could scupper any hopes West Ham had of a January deal.

Hammers News have been informed that Alexsandro was Nuno Espirito Santo’s top target for the defensive department.

“The Lille player was on Nuno’s list when he arrived and he is the top target,” a leading transfer source explained last month.

“Early talks have been held over price and whether the deal can be done, and the signs are good. Ideally, Nuno wants him in the building in the first week of January as every game is going to be so important.”