Leicester City have reportedly joined West Ham United in the race to sign Jannik Vestergaard, who could cost £20 million this summer.
According to an exclusive report by talkSPORT, West Ham United are no longer in pursuit of Jannik Vestergaard. The 29-year-old Danish defender is now also the subject of interest from Leicester City over a move in the summer transfer window, with Souhampton set to demand a fee in the right of £20 million.
Jannik Vestergaard joined Southampton from Borussia Monchengladbach in the summer of 2018 and has since proven to be an excellent addition to the Saints’ first-team setup. To date, the Dane has made 79 appearances for the Premier League outfit, chipping in with four goals along the way.
However, his future has been the subject of intense speculation over the last few months, seeing as he has entered the final year of his current contract at St. Mary’s. As a result, a number of clubs have been linked with Vestergaard, with West Ham United reportedly at the forefront of the queue of suitors.
The interest from West Ham is hardly a surprise, considering Angelo Ogbonna is well into his thirties. In addition, Craig Dawson is also on the wrong side of 30, while Issa Diop has reportedly been linked with a potential summer exit from the London Stadium. And having released Fabian Balbuena this summer, the Hammers have been in need of bolstering their defence anyway.
To that end, Vestergaard is a viable target for West Ham, who are now facing stiff competition from Leicester City in pursuit of the 29-year-old. The Foxes have been forced to dip their toes in the transfer market at this late a stage of the transfer window owing to the long-term injury suffered by Wesley Fofana in a pre-season friendly against Villarreal.
As a result, Leicester have been linked with a number of centre-backs in the past week or so, including Ozan Kabak, with Vestergaard emerging as an option worth considering now. The Danish international, though, has a sizeable enough of price-tag, with Southampton set to demand close to £20 million in exchange of his services.
What now remains to be seen is if Leicester quickly launch the offensive for him or if West Ham make their move first. The race to sign Vestergaard is certainly intensifying and it will be interesting to see if either of the club is willing to match the near £20 million valuation to land him.
