West Ham providing ‘intense competition’ for controversial signing – Player status key

Marko Arnautovic became something of an idol at West Ham, even if his ending there wasn’t quite so sweet. The striker was a key player for the Hammers before he dumped them for the riches of Chinese football.

Moving to Shanghai Port, West Ham got themselves over £20m in return, and may now have the possibility of taking the 32-year-old back for nothing.

Once again the Italian media is covering interest from Bologna, and Tuttomercatoweb cover claims from the Serie A club’s local media. Bologna have met with Arnautovic’s brother, and they would be willing to offer a two year contract worth €2.5-3m, likely to be after tax.

Their major condition is that Shanghai let the player leave on free transfer status. West Ham and Crystal Palace are said to be providing ‘intense competition’ for the deal, and it would be assumed that if Shanghai are ready to agree to a free deal for Bologna, they’d consider the same for the English clubs too.

A return would be controversial for some, yet if it’s on a zero cost move then it would be much more palatable.