West Ham made an offer up to a fee of £13.4million (€15million) for the capture of Algerian international defender Aissa Mandi over the summer window, according to Sevilla.abc.
The Spanish news outlet claim that the Hammers tabled a bid between €10million and €15million, but that it was only half of what his club Real Betis, who will be taking part in the Europa League this season, were looking for, with a €30million release clause said to be in his contract.
Having missed out on the 40-cap star, it is stated that the Hammers instead turned to Issa Diop, who did agree terms on a deal at the London Stadium.
Opinion
So perhaps West Ham had to settle for their second option when it came to sourcing new defensive talent this summer. Mandi, at 26-years-old, is a little more experienced than Diop, and the price tag they thought they could get the Algerian for was much less than the signing they eventually made. However Betis stuck to their guns and forced the Irons to look elsewhere. Would Mandi have been a better choice? The powerhouse is a proven performer for both club and country, having played in Ligue 1 before La Liga, and perhaps that could well be what Manuel Pellegrini needed instead of taking a risk on Diop, whose career is still in its fledgling stage. Either way, this will have to be a case of what might have been, and they do not look to have made a bad move by snapping up Diop, even if he is a work in progress.