Tottenham intercept West Ham for Milenkovic

There are reports West Ham United talks for Fiorentina defender Nikola Milenkovic have broken down, so Tottenham Hotspur are back in contention.

The negotiations have dragged on for weeks with little real progress, as every time Italian sources suggested they were close to a breakthrough, the situation stalled again.

Now Sky Sports UK claim West Ham have become frustrated and walked away from the table.

Instead, Tottenham director Fabio Paratici has taken their place, trying to get the 23-year-old Serbia international to a different part of London.

This too is because of talks that broke down, in their case the on-going discussions with Bologna for Takehiro Tomiyasu, who will cost at least €20m.

Milenkovic is slightly cheaper at €17-18m because he is in the final year of his Fiorentina contract.

Tottenham are seeking a defender who can play both in the centre and as a right-back, so Tomiyasu and Milenkovic would fit that bill.

The Serbian has one goal in 28 senior caps for his country and never seemed particularly convinced by the idea of joining West Ham, especially after links earlier in the summer with Juventus and Sevilla.