Bold West Ham £25m transfer bid for Man Utd target as development emerges

West Ham have joined Manchester United in the race to sign highly-rated Nice defender Jean-Clair Tobido.

New Hammers boss Julen Lopetegui is aiming for a European finish in his first season at the London Stadium and is keen to improve on the club’s dismal defensive record after shipping 74 goals in 38 league games last term under David Moyes.

West Ham had the 17th ranked defensive record in the league last season behind only relegated trio Luton Town, Burnley and Sheffield United. Lopetegui believes Tobido is the perfect player to strengthen his side’s defensive options and sees him as one of the club’s top centre back targets along with Max Kilman of Wolves.

Todibo, who joined Nice from Barcelona in 2021, has previously been targeted by Manchester United and Tottenham, but it is West Ham who have made an opening bid, believed to be in the region of around £25m, as per The Guardian.

This opening offer has been rebuffed by the French giants, but is expected that West Ham will return with a new and improved offer as they look to use some of the funds raised by the £105m sale of club captain Declan Rice last summer.

Tobido has long been regarded as one of the best centre backs in Ligue 1 and though he has only been capped two times for the French national team so far, he still believes he can be a regular starter in years to come.

He is renowned for his exceptional pace, defensive positioning and his aerial ability. Last term, he was part of a Nice team which conceded a league best 29 goals in 34 matches - which is a stark contrast to the Hammers last season.

The 24-year-old has hinted at a potential transfer to the Premier League in recent times and last month told L’Equipe: “I want to win [the] title and play in the best European competitions. Those are my objectives. I’d also like to go to a club that will allow me to become better, to allow me to progress on an individual level. That’s what interests me.

“I am open to joining any league honestly. I watch more or less every league and each one could appear to me. I’m not fixated in terms of what league to join. Could I flourish in the Premier League? Yeah, I think so and I think I could flourish in any league. Is there a possibility that my chances correspond best with the Premier League? There is a chance, yes.”

L’Equipe understands that Nice value Tobido at around £50m which is significantly more than the amount West Ham have so far proposed. Nice are partly owned by Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s INEOS which has led to strong speculation linking him with Manchester United who are on the lookout for replacements after Raphael Varane’s departure and Jonny Evans’ retirement.