West Ham defender Issa Diop has been the subject of transfer enquiries from Liverpool, according to a report from The Athletic.
The report claimed the Hammers are reluctant to allow Diop to leave for the Reds as the clubs currently occupy fourth and fifth positions in the Premier League table.
One way the deal could still happen is for Liverpool to agree to sign the centre-back on a permanent basis at the end of the season, with the report claiming that West Ham would demand in excess of £20m.
The 24-year-old has found himself down the pecking order under David Moyes this season, with Craig Dawson’s performances in particular making a route to the starting XI difficult for Diop.
A France under-21 international, the 6 foot 3 defender has played just five times this season in all competitions, having been a mainstay of 32 Premier League outings last term.
West Ham face the reigning champions on Sunday, with Jurgen Klopp’s side in the midst of a major defensive injury crisis.
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For perhaps one of the few times in recent history, the Hammers hold all the aces with one of the heralded ‘big six’ clubs sniffing around one of their stars.
In the past, Diop was arguably the pick of the defenders on show in east London, although that hasn’t been the case for some time.
Clearly out of favour with Moyes, should the Merseyside club agree to pay the premium in the summer, it would perhaps make sense to part ways – albeit not before then given the teams’ respective league positions now.
