Insider ExWHUemployee has revealed that West Ham United will likely be snubbed by transfer target Filip Kostic this summer.
In recent times, it has become clear that the Hammers have a keen interest in signing the Eintracht Frankfurt man, with Ex saying that he even expected a bid in the region of £17m to be accepted by the German club.
Despite that, though, it seems as though Kostic will not be willing to accept any proposal made to him by the Premier League club as he would rather play Champions League football this term.
In an update shared to The West Ham Way Patreon page, Ex outlined his full understanding of the current transfer situation.
He wrote: “We can confirm that after talks today [Saturday] it appears that West Ham have resigned themselves to the fact that Filip Kostic does not want to join the club at this point and in fact wishes to see out the final year of his contract and become a free agent next summer.
“This will then give him the chance to play Champions League football with Eintracht Frankfurt and concentrate on the World Cup with Serbia.
“This is disappointing news for David Moyes, who had identified him as a key target.”
Will West Ham land Filip Kostic this summer?
Yes
No
TIF Thoughts on Filip Kostic and West Ham…
Having won the Europa League last season – beating West Ham along the way – Kostic will indeed have the opportunity to play Champions League football at his current club. The Hammers instead will be playing in the Europa Conference League.
That alone is a pretty good reason for the left-sided player to remain where he is for now, especially as he might not want to disrupt his career with a summer move to a new league with the World Cup on the horizon, too – just as Ex mentions.
With just one year left on his contract, Kostic will be free to move to a different club this time next year. Judging from these latest comments, it looks as though he feels this is the better option for him. And so, Moyes and co may have to look elsewhere in the transfer market.