Sources: West Ham agree Jan Bednarek signing after Aston Villa hijack
West Ham have agreed a deal to sign Southampton defender Jan Bednarek, sources have told Football Insider.
The Irons are closing a deadline-day move for the centre-back after hijacking rivals Aston Villa.
Steven Gerrard’s team had a deal in place for Bednarek, 26, and were confident of landing him as a short-term replacement for long-term absentee Diego Carlos after holding talks.
But West Ham have ambushed Villa as they prepare to lose their own defender Craig Dawson.
The Londoners have an agreement in principle for Bednarek and he is set to undergo a medical on Thursday before completing the move.
The 42-cap Poland international, who has three years left to run on his contract, has played 153 times for the Saints since joining Lech Poznan in 2017.
Two of those appearances have come in 2022-23, but he has been an unused substitute in each of Southampton’s last three matches.
Southampton have bolstered their defensive numbers with the addition of 20-year-old Armel Bella-Kotchap this summer, who joined from VfL Bochum in a £9m deal.
The Hammers meanwhile signed Nayef Aguerd from Stade Rennais for £31m earlier in the window, with Thilo Kehrer also joining from Paris Saint-Germain for £9m in mid-August.
David Moyes’ side drew 1-1 with Tottenham on Wednesday (31 August) and are 14th in the table after five matches.
Southampton beat Chelsea 2-1 the previous day and are up to 8th after the same number of games.
In other news, pundit issues Tomas Soucek warning after £50m-plus West Ham news