West Ham United offered €25m for Rennes midfielder Djaoui Cisse in the summer | OneFootball

West Ham United made a very large offer to sign Rennes midfielder Djaoui Cisse during the summer transfer window, according to French outlet Le10Sport.

West Ham and Inter Milan were both keen on recruiting services of the 21-year-old, with the Hammers offering a €25 million package to bring him to the London Stadium club.

However, Rennes knocked back their bid as they want to build the team around Cisse and hold on to him for as long as they can.

West Ham added El Hadji Malick Diouf, Kyle Walker-Peters, Callum Wilson, Mads Hermansen, Mateus Fernandes, Soungoutou Magassa and Igor Julio to their squad during the summer transfer window.

Lukasz Fabianski also returned to the East London club as a free agent, but the Hammers have started 2025-26 on a woeful note.

They have lost four of their opening five Premier League games, with manager Graham Potter under huge pressure.

Signing Cisse would not have likely changed their fortune, but the Frenchman could have proven to be a valuable addition to their midfield.

West Ham are currently struggling in the position, which has affected them at both ends of the pitch.

The Rennes academy graduate was one of the best players at the European Under-21 Championship, helping France reach the semi-finals.

The 6ft 2in Cisse loves to dribble and regularly attempts to score from a distance, and West Ham could do with such a player in the middle of the park.

A deal fell through in the summer but they could attempt to go after him again in January or next summer following his fine start to the season.

He has helped Rennes to two wins and two draws in five Ligue 1 games so far in 2025-26, and a move to the Premier League in the not-too-distant future could appeal to him.