By GETHIN HICKS, TRAINEE REPORTER
Published: | Updated:
Marseille are reportedly interested in signing West Ham United left back Emerson before the end of the transfer window.
The French giants are in need of a left sided full back this summer after losing the talented Quentin Merlin to Rennes in a £13million deal.
And they’ve seemingly identified the experienced Brazilian, now 31, as one of their prime targets, according to Foot Mercato.
Any potential move to Marseille would see Emerson return to Ligue 1 four years after he was sent out on loan by his former club Chelsea to Lyon.
Having signed for the Blues in an £18million deal from Roma back in 2018, the attacking full back failed to dislodge Marcos Alonso in the starting eleven during his time in west London before moving east to the Hammers in 2022 on a four-year deal.
He’s played with far more regularity at West Ham, racking up 113 appearances in all competitions during his three seasons with the club.
West Ham United defender Emerson is attracting interest from Marseille
The French giants are in the market for a left back this summer after losing last season’s starter Quentin Merlin to Rennes
Emerson’s potential move to Marseille, a side who boast former Premier League stars Mason Greenwood and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, is far from a certainty however with the Ligue 1 outfit also looking at other targets.
One of those is thought to be Liverpool’s Kostas Tsimikas, who looks set to leave the Reds this summer.
The 29-year-old is yet to feature for Arne Slot’s side this season following the signing of Milos Kerkez, which puts Tsimikas as the club’s third choice left back.
Marseille view Tsimikas as a stylistic fit for Roberto de Zerbi’s three at the back system, which would likely see the Greek international play as a wing back.
He’s attracting interest from a number of other clubs too however, including English outfits Nottingham Forest and Leeds.
Marseille are nevertheless thought to need to offload a number of players before they spend any more money in this window.
England international Jonothan Rowe, 22, formerly of Norwich, and French international Adrien Rabiot are believed to be two of the players at risk of the chop before the September 1 deadline.
Sunderland and Bologna are understood to be interested in Rowe, while Juventus – Rabiot’s old club – could return for the midfielder.
Kostas Tsimikas is also thought to be on Marseille’s shortlist at left back
The Ligue 1 side already boast former Premier League stars Mason Greenwood and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang
The Frenchman has previously been linked with a move to Manchester United, notably when his contract expired two years ago.
He opened up about the deal in an interview with The Athletic earlier this year, saying: ‘I felt a bit of reticence about whether United were going to be able to go on and achieve great things. Because they’re in a bit of a hole at the moment.’
Rowe helped the England Under-21s to the European Championship crown this summer.
The players were told about the club’s decision to transfer list them on Monday and it followed their ugly bust-up during Marseille’s 1-0 loss to Rennes.
According to RMC Sport, Rowe was accused of not putting in enough effort by Rabiot.
He was also targeted by a number of other players in the dressing room and there was said to be shoving and insults thrown in both directions.
The mood reportedly turned toxic as several key names voiced their frustrations and manager Roberto De Zerbi delivered a crude speech.
The ex-Brighton boss reportedly allowed the players to argue among themselves before interjecting: ‘The others beat us on the pitch, and we come in here and fight among ourselves.
‘You know what that means? That we have small balls. In Marseille, we need to have big ones.’
