Milliyet claim West Ham United officials have arrived in Istanbul to hold transfer talks with Besiktas over signing Chilean midfielder Gary Medel.
Earlier this week we covered reports from Turkey that Medel is a target for West Ham ahead of the January window, and now it’s claimed talks have been held between the two clubs.
Milliyet claim during the meeting West Ham offered €7m to Besiktas for Medel but the Turkish club have asked the Premier League club to increase their offer. This comes after a claim yesterday the Hammers had initially made a bid of €5m.
As paraphrased by the Turkish newspaper, Besiktas informed West Ham: “Medel is an important player for us. We are not looking to let him go, our manager also wants him to stay. With those terms, we can’t allow his departure.”
Medel is said to be keen on a return to Premier League after his spell with Cardiff City and more meetings are expected to take place.
It’s also reported West Ham manager Manuel Pellegrini is keen to work with the 31-year old.
