The agent charged with negotiating Pedro Obiang's move from West Ham United to Fiorentina has blamed the impending transfer of Marko Arnautovic to China and Manuel Pellegrini's veto for scuppering the deal.
Fiorentina were ready to take Obiang, a former Sampdoria player, back to Italy and West Ham handed an exclusive mandate to put the transfer in place to agent Giulio Meozzi.
But West Ham have now shut the door on selling Obiang, rejecting Fiorentina's €11m proposal, just when it seemed that the deal could go through.
Meozzi says that Arnautovic's impending move to China, along with Pellegrini's desire to keep Obiang, meant the transfer collapsed, and West Ham did not say Fiorentina's offer was not good enough, instead switching their stance to a not for sale one.
The agent told Italian outlet Tutto Mercato: "For €11m, West Ham had said the player could be given up, there's no doubt about it.
"The president then removed him from the market after the sale of Arnautovic to China was approaching.
"In reality, the president had been convinced to let Obiang go himself, but it was the coach, Pellegrini, who opposed it.
"The figure offered by Fiorentina was right and correct", Meozzi stressed.
"It was just before the president turned around and Pellegrini blew up the operation.
"It is no coincidence that West Ham have made it known that the player was not for sale and not that the amount offered was not adequate."
Arnautovic has been tipped to complete a big money move to Chinese Super League giants Shanghai SIPG before the end of the week, in what will be a blow to West Ham.
