Nikola Vlasic is desperate to leave Premier League outfit West Ham United and recently contacted Mark Noble and David Moyes in an attempt to force through his move to Torino.
Last week, the £13 million option-to-buy clause in the Croatian’s Torino contract expired.
Nikola Vlasic enjoyed a largely excellent season out on loan in Serie A; Granata coach Ivan Juric speaking openly about his desire to retain the midfielder’s services on a permanent basis. But his hopes of sealing a return to Italy now rest upon whether a compromise can be reached between the two clubs.
Torino saw an opening bid of £7 million rejected in May (Tuttosport). West Ham are holding out for closer to £13 million.
And with negotiations stalling, Vlasic has taken it upon himself to clarify his future before the summer descends into a saga.
Nikola Vlasic wants to leave West Ham United
The former Everton misfit, Tuttosport say, has ‘called’ manager David Moyes, sporting director Mark Noble and even club secretary Andrew Pincher, pleading for the Conference League winners to accept Torino’s proposal.
Vlasic is now awaiting the final decision from Hammers owner David Sullivan.
Much will depend, however, on whether or not Torino are willing to improve their opening offer of £7 million. West Ham seem content to take a hit on a player they signed for an eye-watering £25 million two years ago after a superb spell at CSKA Moscow, but remain unwilling to accept a seven-figure sum after Vlasic went some way to rebuilding his reputation in Serie A.
The Croatia international scored five goals and set up eight more as Juventus’ local rivals sealed a top-half finish.
“Vlasic and (fellow loanee Alexei) Miranchuk are not under examination. We are very happy with their season; with how they played, how they behaved,” Juric told a few weeks back Calciomercato.
“They both did excellent with the prospect of doing even better next year.”
“The Torino fans are fantastic,” adds Vlasic, who helped Croatia finish third at the Qatar World Cup in December (via CalcioNews24).
“From the first day I arrived in the city, they took me by the hand. Everyone asks me to stay for a long time. I am very happy at Torino. Let’s see what happens in the summer.”
West Ham also have a decision to make about Gianluca Scamacca – Roma are interested – while Manuel Lanzini wll depart when his contract expires next month.
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