West Ham have agreed a deal to sign Jean-Clair Todibo from French side Nice but fear the defender wants to move to Juventus instead.
West Ham’s deal with Nice would see them pay an initial €5million (£4.2m; $5.5m) loan fee for Todibo with an obligation to buy of €32m and an additional €3m due in potential add-ons. Nice will retain a sell-on clause if the 24-year-old moves to West Ham permanently.
The Premier League side, though, fear Todibo would prefer a move to Juventus as they can offer Champions League football next term, having finished third in Serie A last season.
Todibo has emerged as a prime transfer target for West Ham this summer with the futures of Nayef Aguerd and Kurt Zouma uncertain. The Athletic reported at the beginning of July that they had a €30million (£25.4m, $32.3m) bid for Todibo rejected.
Despite that, there was still belief that a deal could be concluded for the Todibo, whose contract expires in June 2027, with Nice open to cashing in on him during this summer window.
Zouma has only one year remaining on his West Ham contract (Rob Newell – CameraSport/Getty Images)
Manchester United had evaluated a deal for Todibo this summer but such a move was ruled out in light of UEFA guidance on multi-club ownership issued last month which warned clubs subject to multi-club ownership tests against such deals.
Ligue 1 club Nice are owned by Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s company INEOS, which completed a purchase of minority stake in United earlier this year. Ratcliffe did not name the player, but previously confirmed that United cannot currently buy directly from Nice due to the ownership situation.
Todibo joined Nice on an initial loan deal from Barcelona in January 2021 before making the move permanent that summer. He has played 119 matches for them, scoring one goal.
West Ham have already completed deals to sign Wolves defender Max Kilman, Brazilian teenage winger Luis Guilherme from Palmeiras and goalkeeper Wes Foderingham, a free agent, this summer. Midfielder Flynn Downes, meanwhile, has joined Southampton on a permanent deal after spending last season on loan with Russell Martin’s side.
(Sylvain Thomas/AFP via Getty Images)
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