West Ham United will step up their interest in Alaves defender Guillermo Maripan this summer – and they could sign the defender for a cut-price £10milllion, according to Football London.
The 24-year-old has been catching the eye since arriving at the La Liga side in 2017 and has made 23 appearances this season in all competitions as the Spanish side remains in contention to qualify for the Europa League.
Maripan has been nursing an ankle injury since March and Alaves have not won any of the matches the defender has not been involved in.
West Ham boss Manuel Pellegrini is keen to bolster this squad this summer after an inconsistent Premier League campaign.
The defensive department is an area the Hammers manager wants to strengthen with Winston Reid failing to make a single appearance all season due to injury and the indifferent performances of Angelo Ogbonna in recent months.
Maripan has a release clause of £23m in his current contract at the Mendizorrotza but Football London understands that West Ham will be able to get the defender for around £10m.
The Hammers wanted to sign the Chilean in January, according to Spanish news outlet La Segunda, but Alaves rejected an offer of £8.5m.
Maripan began his career with Universidad Catolica in his homeland and made 93 appearances over a five-year period before moving to Spain in July 2017, signing a four-year contract with the La Liga side.
The defender has 13 caps for Chile, scoring twice, after making his debut against Spain in the 2017 China Cup.
West Ham ended a run of four games without a win on Saturday by handing Tottenham Hotspur their first defeat at the New White Hart Lane stadium as Michail Antonio scored the only goal of the game to give the Hammers the points.
