West Ham Bids For Marseille Center-Back As Transfer Deadline Nears, Report Says

West Ham United FC is making a move for another player after acquiring Vladimir Coufal, a report said.

Sky Sports reported that West Ham submitted a bid for Marseille defender Duje Caleta-Car with the transfer deadline fast approaching. The 24-year-old had an impressive outing in Ligue 1 action last season under the watch of Andre Villas-Boas.

If successful, the 24-year-old Croatian would be the latest addition to the Hammers after right-back Coufal. The 28-year-old player from Slavia Prague signed a three-year deal worth $6 million after completing his medical, Sky Sports reported.

Caleta-Car joined Marseille in 2018 following a $19.4 million deal with Salzburg. He was part of the Croatian team that finished runner-up at the World Cup in Russia.

L’Equipe reported that West Ham's offer is far from what Marseille is asking, though other details tied to the deal are yet to be known. There is a chance that the bid could be up for revisions, but West Ham does not have time on its side.

West Ham manager David Moyes has turned his attention on the Croatian football player after bids for other previous targets bogged down. Among the players West Ham had on its wish list were James Tarkowski of Burnley, Wesley Fofana and Nikola Milenkovic.

Of those three, Fofana ended up going to Leicester City following a deal worth roughly $38.5 million.

Curiously, Caleta-Car is believed to be reluctant to leave Marseille since he wants to play in the Champions League. Among the clubs in the same group include Manchester City, Porto and Olympiacos. The belief is that if given the choice, he would prefer to leave next summer.

Regardless, West Ham is hoping that the 24-year-old center-back can be convinced of bigger opportunities with a shift to the Premier League. Marseille has yet to respond to the bid, something that could fall through in the next few days.

If Olympique de Marseille thumbs the deal down, the Hammers would need to regroup fast as Moyes seems bent on adding a center-back. They are likely to focus their attention on Craig Dawson of Watford.

The 30-year-old became an option after West Ham failed to meet the valuation set by Burnley FC for another target, Tarkowski. BBC Sport reported that the Hammers made a $30 million bid, but the offer was far from what the Clarets wanted for Tarkowski.