Report: French side leapfrog West Ham and Newcastle in race to sign CL defender

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According to a report from Gianluca Di Marzio, Rennes have overtaken Newcastle United in the race for Juventus defender Daniele Rugani.

The Italian has been linked with a move to the Premier League for a couple of years now. Rugani was once one of the brightest defensive prospects in world football during his time with Empoli.

Juventus beat a number of top clubs to his signature back in 2012. But he hasn’t quite been what they hoped for. Rugani is well down the pecking order in Turin at the moment.

The 26-year-old is likely on his way out of Juventus before the transfer window closes on Monday, and the Premier League was reported by many as his next destination.

Alfredo Pedulla claimed last week that West Ham United were the favourites for his signature, while fellow London rivals Fulham were also interested. The same outlet reported earlier this week that Newcastle were also in the race.

Sadly, the Premier League trio are set to miss out. Di Marzio reveals that French side Rennes are getting closer to completing a loan move for the defender.

They will pay Juventus a loan fee in the region of £1.6 million, a fairly cheap price. The report claims that Newcastle pushed hard to sign the defender a few hours before Rennes advanced their talks, but it looks like they have failed.

Tough for Newcastle but huge blow to West Ham

Rugani looks like he is headed to France, which is a big blow to the interested English sides. Newcastle need defensive reinforcements but, considering that they already have Jamaal Lascelles, Fabian Schar, Federico Fernandez, Ciaran Clark and even Paul Dummett, they should be alright.

The real issue here is for West Ham. The Hammers are failing with all their bids for a new central defender. James Tarkowski was their priority target, but Moyes’ side have had multiple offers rejected for him already (Sky Sports).

Their reported move to sign Fiorentina’s Nikola Milenkovic was also rejected (Di Marzio), which has left them in a very difficult spot. With the transfer window closing in three days, West Ham need to secure one of their targets, but their chances look slim now.