West Ham launch £25m Jean-Clair Todibo bid as summer transfer plans step up

West Ham have seen an initial €30million (£25.4m) bid for centre-back Jean-Clair Todibo rejected by Nice.

New Hammers boss Julen Lopetegui is looking to revamp his backline this summer, with at least one and possibly two high-profile additions at centre-back.

Todibo, who was the subject of interest from Tottenham in January, has emerged as a leading target and the club are now weighing up whether to return with an improved offer, having also seen an opening bid for Wolves captain Max Kilman rejected last month.

West Ham conceded more goals than any other Premier League side to avoid relegation last season and have already seen veteran defender Angelo Ogbonna depart at the end of his contract, while there is also uncertainty over the futures of Nayef Aguerd and Kurt Zouma.

Todibo, who joined Nice from Barcelona in 2021, has made over 125 appearances for the Ligue 1 outfit, who are thought to be willing to sell this summer.

The 24-year-old is also liked by Manchester United and at one stage appeared on course for a move to Old Trafford as a replacement for Raphael Varane.

That, however, now looks unlikely because of Uefa’s rules around multi-club ownership, with Sir Jim Ratcliffe, whose petrochemical company Ineos owns Nice, having bought a 27.7 per cent share in United last year.

“They (UEFA) have said we can sell him to another Premiership club, but we can't sell to Manchester United,” Ratcliffe told Bloomberg last month. “But that's not fair on the player and I don’t see what that achieves.”