West Ham United are set to renew their interest in Fiorentina defender Nikola Milenkovic in the upcoming transfer window.
The lowdown
The Hammers tried to sign centre-back Milenkovic in 2021, but the move broke down. Journalist Angelo Giorgetti reported that the player himself turned down the transfer.
The 24-year-old has made 28 Serie A appearances so far this season and has racked up 33 caps for Serbia.
Valued at £20.7million by Transfermarkt, he has just over a year left to run on his contract with La Viola.
[web_stories_embed url="https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/web-stories/west-ham-latest-developments-4/" title="West Ham latest developments!" poster="" width="360" height="600" align="none"]
The latest
Fiorentina News (via Sport Witness) claim that West Ham are expected to make another push for Milenkovic this summer.
They face competition, however, from Serie A giants Fiorentina and AC Milan.
Fiorentina hope to convince Milenkovic to stay with a new contract proposal and qualification for European football. They're currently in sixth, on track for the Europa Conference League.
The verdict
West Ham may yet to be able to offer Champions League football, the reward for winning the Europa League. They're due to face Eintracht Frankfurt in the semifinals later this month.
That could make them considerably more attractive to Milenkovic, if indeed he wasn't particularly keen last summer.
He's an imposing, 6 foot 4 CB, winning 3.6 aerial duels per 90 minutes (84th percentile in Europe's top five leagues), but his 90.2% pass completion record suggests he's also confident in possession (via FBRef).
Milenkovic is also a goal threat when he comes up from the back, having netted 12 times during his Serie A career. According to sports journalist Josh Bunting, he's shown 'wonderful' composure in the opposition box.
If Moyes intends to move on or upgrade one of his current centre-back options - Kurt Zouma, Craig Dawson, Angelo Ogbonna and Issa Diop - then Milenkovic looks a good option.
In other news, West Ham join the race for a midfielder who 'devoured' Man Utd.