Liverpool, West Ham ‘in the queue’ to sign Napoli midfielder who could be offloaded in bargain January transfer
Liverpool and West Ham United are reportedly ‘in the queue’ to sign a Napoli midfielder who will soon be entering the final six months of his contract with the Serie A club.
The Premier League duo look set to compete with Italian giants Juventus to sign the highly-rated Poland international Piotr Zielinski, either in the new year or next summer on a free.
That’s according to Corriere dello Sport, who have been reporting on the several options that are open to the 29-year-old.
Juve’s interest stems from the fact that they need to find replacements for Paul Pogba and Nicolo Fagioli, who have been suspended for a failed drugs test and betting offences respectively.
Corriere dello Sport adds that the Turin side are currently looking at various options, one of which is the experienced impressive Zielinski.
The player’s current contract ends next summer and he’s yet to renew his deal with the current Serie A champions. That means that he is free to negotiate a pre-contract agreement with clubs from outside of Italy from January 1 – should he so wish.
Zielinski’s situation also means that Napoli could be prepared to let him leave for a bargain fee in January, although there is no mention in the report of what figure that might be. He is currently valued at €35million (£30m) on Transfermarkt.
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Premier League duo competing with Juve, Inter
And while Juve are thought to be a frontrunner for the midfielder’s signature, the report also names Inter Milan, Liverpool and West Ham as being firmly in the race.
Indeed, the Reds have been linked with a move for Zielinski for a number of years, so this latest claim comes as no great surprise.
In terms of West Ham’s interest, David Moyes is still in the process of revamping his midfield after the loss of Declan Rice last summer.
Edson Alvarez and James Ward-Prowse have come in but the Hammers boss is not done when it comes to adding another quality addition to his squad.
It now just remains to be seen what path Napoli and in particular Zielinski choose to take over the next couple of months.