Southampton and West Ham eye Flavius Daniliuc with Nice ready to let defender leave this summer

Southampton and West Ham have got Austria under-21 captain Flavius Daniliuc on their radars.

The Premier League duo have been alerted to the defender, 20, who caught the eye during his debut season in top-flight football last term for French club Nice.

Centre-back Daniliuc began his career in Austria before earning a place at Real Madrid’s academy and then moving to Bayern Munich.

Daniliuc, rated as one of the most promising players of his age, joined Bayern aged 14, working his way up to their second string side and captained the under-19s along the way.

German champions Bayern wanted to extend his deal last summer but Daniliuc opted to leave and join Nice, then managed by Patrick Vieira, instead to kick-start his career.

That decision paid off with composed, intelligent and powerful defender Daniliuc gaining his first taste of senior football, making 26 appearances across Ligue 1, the Europa League and the French Cup last season.

Daniliuc still has three years left on his contract but also has fellow centre-backs Dante and Jean-Clair Todibo among his teammates so could move on – either on loan or permanently – this summer.