Nikola Vlasic did his hopes of securing a £12 million permanent move to Serie A no harm at all with the West Ham United loanee earning the praise of Torino boss Ivan Juric following Wednesday’s 2-0 victory over Sampdoria, speaking to Corriere dello Sport.
After showcasing the defensive side of his game in a stand-out victory over reigning Scudetto holders AC Milan recently, Vlasic was back to doing what he does best at the other end of the pitch in midweek; lifting the Granata up to ninth with a Man of the Match display during a convincing win against struggling Samp.
Vlasic set up Nemanja Radonjic’s opener with a clever pass before doubling the lead himself, spinning on a sixpence and curling into the bottom corner.
In 15 games for Torino, the Croatian now has four goals and three assists. Already more than he managed during the entirety of the 2021/22 campaign at West Ham.
West Ham United loanee Nikola Vlasic could seal Serie A switch
“Is Vlasic our top player? He is a great player. He does everything well in the defensive phase,” says Juric, who was been linked recently with the Nottingham Forest job.
“Against (Milan’s Sandro) Tonali, he played an amazing game playing as a midfielder. And today he played central, doing very well. I like him. He’s a good player.”
According to Calciomercato, Torino have a £12 million option-to-buy clause in Vlasic’s contract. And though president Urbano Cairo refused to be drawn on whether or not they plan to trigger it, the one-time Everton misfit is clearly making an excellent impression at Juventus’ city rivals.
“At the moment, there is no kind of hypothesis about the market,” Cairo says. “We are on the fourteenth game (of the season). Talking about the market now is really very early.
“(Vlasic is doing) very well. He is very good and very strong. I like him very much too, but let’s wait and see. The season is long. I am very satisfied with him.”
West Ham paid £25 million to sign Vlasic from CSKA Moscow in 2021. Should he make his stay at Torino permanent, the Hammers will find themselves making a £13 million loss on a player who, for whatever reason, seems to thrive everywhere but England.
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