Bologna are prepared to compete with Sampdoria to sign West Ham United midfielder Pedro Obiang, according to Calciomercato.
The 27-year-old wants to leave the Hammers this summer after four years in East London and a return to Italy looks a real possibility.
Obiang began his career with Sampdoria and spent five years at the Stadio Luigi Ferraris before moving for West Ham for an undisclosed fee in June 2015.
The West Ham midfielder has been a regular during his time with the Hammers, scoring three times in 116 appearances, but his performances have been inconsistent since arriving at the London club.
Bologna are looking to build on their 10th-place finish in Serie A last season and have identified Obiang as a target as an alternative to Sassuolo’s Alfred Duncan
They face competitions from Sampdoria who are keen to bring him back to the club where he began his career while AC Milan has also been linked with a move for the West Ham man.
The Equatorial Guinea international was believed to be close to joining Fiorentina in January in a £10million deal but the Hammers could not find a replacement and the move fell through.
West Ham will be looking for around the same price for the midfielder this summer and the money raised will be available for manager Manuel Pellegrini to reinvest in the squad.
The Hammers boss is understood to have targeted Newcastle United midfielder Isaac Hayden as Obiang’s replacement. The former Arsenal man wants to leave Tyneside and return south for family reasons.
Pellegrini has already made a move in the transfer market adding two new goalkeepers to the ranks in Roberto and David Martin from Espanyol and Millwall respectively, while £24m was spent on Villarreal attacker Pablo Fornals.