West Ham in race with Leicester to sign 19-year-old centre-back from Saint-Etienne; both clubs also interested in Burnley’s James Tarkowski

Fofana made 24 appearances for St Etienne last season and impressed in the French Cup final against PSG’s Neymar

West Ham have made a bid worth up to £33m for Saint-Etienne centre back Wesley Fofana.

Other clubs are interested in the 19-year-old, but West Ham are believed to have made the highest offer so far – which includes an initial fee of £23m and up to £10m in add-ons.

Leicester have also been in talks to sign Fofana, who has been vocal on social media of his desire to move on from Ligue 1.

The Hammers are looking to add a centre-back to their ranks this summer and have seen three bids turned down by Burnley for James Tarkowski, who is also on the Foxes’ transfer radar.

Despite signing a new contract in April, Fofana has told Saint-Etienne head coach Claude Puel he wants to leave to play in the Premier League and was left out of the club’s matchday squad to play Nantes on Sunday evening.

St Etienne originally wanted £25m for their defender, significantly beyond what Leicester are willing to pay to bring him to the King Power Stadium.

Fofana made 24 appearances for St Etienne in a breakthrough campaign last year, as the team qualified for the Europa League and made the French Cup final.

1:30

French football expert Jonathan Johnson says Leicester must ‘strike now’ for St Etienne’s Wesley Fofana as he will be a player in demand come next summer.

Transfer Centre LIVE!

All the latest news, analysis and rumours from the window in one place.

The summer transfer window closes at 11pm on October 5 with Sky Sports News offering a feast of activity on Transfer Deadline Day.

A domestic-only window for trades between the Premier League and EFL then runs from October 5 and closes on Friday, October 16 at 5pm. Follow all the news and analysis on Sky Sports News and across Sky Sports‘ digital platforms, including with our dedicated Transfer Centre blog.