West Ham must sign Sassuolo ace Filip Djuricic

West Ham are reportedly keen on signing attacking midfielder Filip Djuricic from Serie A side Sassuolo.

According to Italian media outlet Calciomercato, Southampton and Everton are also showing an interest in the 29-year-old.

The Serbia international’s current deal expires in 2022 and he does not seem to be any closer to penning an extension there.

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This means that the Hammers, along with any foreign club, could have a pre-contract agreement with him in January ahead of a free transfer in the summer.

West Ham looked to sign Jesse Lingard all summer and failed in their quest to sign the Manchester United attacker.

Now, with him set to stay at Old Trafford, it makes a whole lot of sense to make a move for Djuricic.

Even though the club signed Nikola Vlasic in the summer, Andriy Yarmolenko is all but set to leave, so signing a player on free will not bother the Hammers hierarchy a great deal.

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In 2012, Goal wrote an editorial on Djuricic and labelled him as “The Balkan Cruyff with a hint of Kaka.”

While he may not be as good as the AC Milan legend, he’s certainly got a few glimpses of Kaka in him and the Hammers could do with a few flair players like the Serbian.

The 29-year-old is a progressive passer and averaged close to two key passes every game last season in Serie A. [Whoscored]

He’s also tidy with the ball at his feet, averaging a pass accuracy north of 75 percent – which is an impressive number given the kinds of passes attacking midfielders attempt.

This season, he’s also putting in a decent shift off the ball, winning 1.4 tackles per 90 minutes.

Moyes could certainly do with a player of his calibre and he must sign him in the summer.

In other West Ham news, exit-linked Hammers ace is set to stay with the club weighing up a new deal

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