Leeds United and West Ham United have made concrete attempts to sign OGC Nice’s Melvin Bard on deadline day.
That’s according to L’Equipe, who cover the Whites and West Ham’s efforts to secure the left-back’s signature.
Leeds United and West Ham keen
OGC Nice are in the process of finalising Eintracht Frankfurt left-back Niels Nkounkou’s signing.
His arrival depends on the 25-year-old leaving the Ligue 1 side and that’s about to take shape.
Melvin Bard is attracting interest from England, where Leeds United and West Ham United are the most active suitors. The Premier League side and Nuno Espírito Santo’s side have come forward to sign him.
Details of Leeds United and West Ham bids
The two English clubs have made offers to sign the fullback on loan. Daniel Farke’s side have tabled a bid that includes a €1m loan fee with an option to buy set at €5m.
This is lower than his value. The Frenchman has a contract until 2028, and Transfermarkt value him at €10m.
The newspaper doesn’t mention the details of West Ham United’s offer and adds OGC Nice have ‘accepted Leeds’ proposal’.
Their title says Nice and Leeds United have agreed a deal. There’s no clarification what convinced them to pick the Elland Road club over the Championship side.
Melvin Bard has to agree on to personal terms with Leeds United and carry out medical tests before joining the Whites. There’s no mention of the personal terms. That may not be an issue, as L’Equipe says he’s ‘very close’ to moving to the Premier League.
Journalist Flavien Trésarrieu covered this report. He took to X, formerly known as Twitter, to add the Hammers have also offered a loan with a purchase option. The defender should play in the Premier League if the move goes through as planned.
Bard graduated from Lyon’s youth system and spent two years with their first team before joining Nice in 2021. Last season, he played 3,680 minutes were from 44 matches.
Last summer, Sunderland reportedly made an offer. A year later, he will move to England to join Leeds United.
West Ham a aussi tenté sa chance avec une offre de prêt avec option mais Bard devrait donc évoluer en Premier League cette saison si se finalise comme prévu #Leeds #WHU https://t.co/6Izn8kXcUH
— Flavien Trésarrieu (@ftresarrieu) August 31, 2026
Key transfer points
- Ligue 1 side want to offload Bard to sign Niels Nkounkou
- Leeds United and West Ham keen, both table offers
- Daniel Farke’s side offering €1m + €5m purchase option
- Nice accept Whites’ offer, Bard on his way to PL
