West Bromwich Albion are pulling all the strings to sign Inter Milan defender Andrea Ranocchia. The Italian defender currently doesn’t have a future in Italy as Inter are trying to start afresh in the next season.
The 29-year-old reignited his career with a short loan spell at Hull City. The Italian defender couldn’t help his team from getting relegated but his decent show was enough to get him linked with a number of clubs.
Hull had an option to make the move permanent but their relegation scuppered any such possibility. However, a player of his quality would be fit for any team in the Premier League and the Baggies are currently assessing their options.
Inter Milan unveiled Luciano Spaletti as their new manager and the ex-Roma manager cleared his intentions by bringing Milan Skriniar from Sampdoria. Inter signed Ranocchia from Genoa in 2010 but he failed to put a decent display for the Nerazzurri prompting the side to send him on loan to Sampdoria and following that a move to Hull City.
His last stint at the KCOM Stadium was almost a very successful campaign and had the Tigers won their relegation battle it would have been an excellent season for the Italian international who has 21 caps for his country.
However, Marco Silva’s trust in the player brought solidity to the Hull defence as the 6’3 defender looked very confident while featuring in 16 games for the side. He was from the same Italian breed which has produced defenders with the likes of Fabio Cannavaro, Paolo Maldini and Alessandro Nesta but Ranocchia’s development has somehow stagnated over the years.
Huddersfield Town have enquired about the player’s availability and with the club confirming the signing of Aaron Mooy from Manchester City in a club record deal, it seems they will not hesitate to give a stern competition to the Baggies if they make a firm move.
Tony Pulis is very keen on strengthening his defence in the summer and is very adamant to bring the Italian to the Hawthorns. The 29-year-old still has two years left on his contract but could be available for a cheaper fee in the region of £4.5m.
Ranocchia is known for his solid defensive display and astute positioning sense. The defender was in the provisional squad of Italy’s World Cup campaign but couldn’t make the final cut.
Baggies stalwart Johny Evans is also considering his future as the former Manchester United defender is very annoyed with the way the club let Darren Fletcher join Stoke City so it is now high time for Pulis to sign an alternative option.
