The Hammers are set to sign Benat from under Atheltic Bilbao’s nose.
Despite looking like a deal between Athletic Bilbao and Real Betis had been done for midfielder Benat, West Ham United are preparing to hijack the transfer at the last minute, reports talkSPORT.
The Spaniard has previously been linked with moves to Arsenal, Tottenham and Manchester City but a deal to sign for La Liga side Bilbao looked as good as done.
However, the Betis man has failed to sign with Athletic as yet and the Irons may make a late move to secure the 26-year-old’s signature.
Benat previously played for Bilbao before he joined Betis in 2010, yet a switch to the Premier League is thought to greatly interest the player.
The midfielder has featured regularly for his club side since signing for them from Conquense and has played 103 times in his three years at Betis, including 32 La Liga appearances in 2012/13.
West Ham have sent scouts to Spain several times and will also have representatives watching Benat’s penultimate game of the season against Real Zaragoza on Sunday.
The midfielder became the first Betis player in four years to appear for Spain in May 2012 when he made his national debut in a friendly against Serbia. Benat has played three more times internationally since.
The Hammers have already been busy in the transfer market with the Premier League season barely over, after securing the signing of Romanian captain Razvan Rat on a one-year contract as well as having a £15million bid for Andy Carroll accepted by Liverpool.
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