Adam Ounas has been left out of Napoli’s squad as the West Ham United-linked winger has “no future at the Stadio San Paolo”, according to Tuttomercatoweb.
With just a few weeks remaining until the transfer window slams shut, Gennaro Gattuso’s Coppa Italia champions are stepping up their attempts to get a couple of out-of-favour players off their books.
Armin Younes and Fernando Llorente were nowhere to be seen as Napoli announced their squad to take on Pescara in a pre-season friendly.
Arkadiusz Milik, Gattuso’s first-choice striker, has been left out too after rejecting the chance to extend a contract that’s due to expire in 2021.
And, after Calciomercato mentioned West Ham as a potential destination for £16 million-rated Ounas, his omission from Napoli’s 25-man squad won’t go unnoticed in the claret-and-blue corner of London.
The Morocco international has been persona non grata in southern Italy for a while, falling out of favour soon after Carlo Ancelotti, the legendary manager who described him as a “special” talent, was sacked in December.
Ounas, who shot to fame at Bordeaux, returned to France in January for a loan spell with Nice, offering a timely reminder of his potential with four goals and four assists under Patrick Vieira.
Interestingly, Napoli did include Kalidou Koulibaly and Nikola Maksimovic in their squad, despite speculation linking the defensive pair with other Premier League clubs.
Maksimovic, a reported target for Everton, has also rejected a new contract with just 12 months left on his current deal (Gazzetta).
West Ham’s record transfers
- Sebastien Haller
£45 million
- Felipe Anderson
£41.5 million
- Marko Arnautovic
£25 million
- Pablo Fornals
£24 million
- Issa Diop
£22 million
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