West Ham United are hoping to tie up a deal to bring Filip Kostic to the London Stadium this weekend.
What’s the talk?
That’s according to a report by Italian media outlet Gazzetta dello Sport (via Sport Witness), who claim that, following weeks of negotiations, David Moyes is finally hoping to reach an agreement with the Eintracht Frankfurt wing-back in the coming days – with the Hammers said to be in talks regarding a €15m (£12.6m) plus bonuses fee with the Bundesliga side.
However, the report goes on to state that Juventus are also set to make an offer of €12m (£10m) plus bonuses for the Serbia international in the next few days, something it is suggested could temp the 29-year-old more than a switch to east London.
Real coup
Considering just how impressive Kostic was for Eintracht last season, should West Ham manage to get a deal over the line for the defender ahead of Italian giants Juventus this summer, it would undoubtedly represent a real coup for the Premier League outfit.
Indeed, over his 31 Bundesliga appearances in 2021/22, the £21.6m-rated wing-back was in stunning form, scoring four goals, providing nine assists and creating 16 big chances for his team-mates, as well as taking an average of 1.6 shots, making 2.8 key passes and completing 0.8 dribbles per game.
These returns saw the 48-cap international average a quite remarkable SofaScore match rating of 7.25, ranking him as Oliver Glasner’s best performer in the league and the 15th-best player in the division as a whole.
The £43k-per-week talent was also in deadly form over his 12 Europa League fixtures last time out, scoring three goals, registering six assists and creating four big chances for his teammates, in addition to taking an average of 2.7 shots, making 2.1 key passes and completing 0.8 dribbles per game.
These metrics saw the Serbian sensation who Fredi Bobic dubbed “extraordinary” average a breathtaking SofaScore match rating of 7.33, ranking him as the joint sixth-best player in the European competition.
As such, it is evident just how much Kostic would add to Moyes’ current options on the left of his backline next season, leading us to believe that the Scot simply must do everything in his power to convince the 29-year-old of a move to the London Stadium ahead of one to Turin this summer.
