Fulham have rejected an offer from West Ham United for midfielder Joao Palhinha, according to various reports this afternoon.

The Hammers have been keen to sign the Portuguese international as a replacement for England midfielder Declan Rice, who finally joined Arsenal in a £105m deal over the weekend. The Hammers were impressed by Palhinha’s debut season in England, when he led the Premier League in tackling, completing 147 challenges as the Whites finished tenth on their return to the top flight.

West Ham finally made a formal offer for the 28 year-old – believed to be worth around £40m – but it was immediately rejected by Fulham. The Cottagers are not considering selling the former Sporting Lisbon schemer, who has another four years to run on his Craven Cottage contract and is delighted to be working with Silva after the Portuguese boss oversaw his emergence from Sporting’s academy earlier in his career.

The Guardian’s Jacob Steinberg, in a change from his earlier reporting, has written this afternoon that the Hammers ‘are not optimistic about their chances of landing the Portugal international’ and suggests that the Whites would hold out for at least £80m for one of Silva’s key players.