With former Borussia Dortmund defender Dan-Axel Zagadou becoming a free agent this summer, West Ham had been pointed out as one of the few potential destinations for him.
Reports from Germany had claimed that the player had ‘apparently found a new club’ as he was set to sign a contract in England, while other reports had already said the Hammers were ‘leading the race’ for his signature.
It turns out that West Ham seem to be losing that competition, because according to Foot Mercato journalist Santi Aouna, Zagadou is actually heading somewhere else.
The reporter claims the defender is, ‘in the next few hours’ joining Stuttgart. After being convinced by their director Sven Mislintat, he’s set to sign a four-year deal with the Bundesliga side.
Aouna doesn’t make it clear if West Ham had still been in the race for Zagadou, despite all those recent reports.
The Hammers signed two centre-backs this summer, having bought Nayef Aguer from Stade Rennais on a €35m deal and Thilo Kehrer from Paris Saint Germain for €12m. That alone seemed to be enough for David Moyes to strengthen their defence.
