West Ham United are in talks with the agent of Napoli defender Nikola Maksimovic with the Serie A giants unable to hand him the £50,000-a-week contract he’s demanding, according to AreaNapoli.
The Partenopei may have survived another transfer window without having to cash in on Kalidou Koulibaly but, while arguably the finest centre-back in Europe is set to stay at Stadio San Paolo, the future of his defensive partner remains far less certain.
Maksimovic has only one year left on his contract.
And, as it stands, Napoli are reluctant to meet the demands of a man who wants a substantial pay rise to stay put.
Maksimovic is said to be demanding £50,000 a week in talks over a new deal – something Napoli are unable or unwilling to offer.
That has opened the door for West Ham, who have just five days left to sign the centre-half David Moyes is demanding.
After talkSPORT claimed the Hammers had made a £14 million bid for a centre-back often compared to fellow Serb Nemanja Vidic, reports from Italy claim the Londoners are in a position to meet Maksimovic’s wage demands.
The Premier League outfit, who have missed out on Wesley Fofana to Leicester City and failed to land Burnley’s James Tarkowski, have £18 million set aside for a new central defender.
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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