Bologna manager Sinisa Mihajlovic is set to hold top-level talks with senior figures on Thursday over a potential move for West Ham midfielder Pedro Obiang, according to Corriere Dello Sport.
The Italian sports newspaper claim on their website that the Irons star is among two candidates lined up by the Serie A side, the other being Velez Sarsfield’s Nicolas Dominguez, with both set to cost a figure of around £8.9million (€10million) this summer.
It is stated that Bologna are having a meeting on Thursday (4 July) to finalise their decision and pursue their chosen target, with Obiang said to be the more reliable option but also more expensive as a result of his wages in east London.
Opinion
Getting Obiang off the books for nearly £9million would not be the worst bit of business West Ham could pull off this summer. He is clearly not going to be a regular in Manuel Pellegrini’s starting XI next season, the likes of Declan Rice, Mark Noble and new arrival Pablo Fornals all ahead in the pecking order, and so selling him would give the Chilean some money to reinvest. It would mean losing a squad player with experience of the Premier League but the Irons are aiming for quality at a higher level than the 27-year-old has to offer. Of course, this decision is not theirs to make and it might well be that Obiang’s wage demands scuppers any chance of Bologna snapping up his capture. The Hammers will be hoping that is not the case but it is always a problem when overseas clubs try to sign players from England, the Premier League offering the sort of money it would be difficult to find elsewhere. If he does eventually leave, he can hold his head high in the knowledge he did his best in 116 games for the east Londoners. If not, he might well have a chance of adding a few more appearances to his record.