West Ham have, as expected, completed the signing of Toulouse centre back Issa Diop for an undisclosed club record fee.

The 21-year-old has penned a five-year contract at the London Stadium and the Hammers claim they fought off competition from a host of European clubs for the defender’s services, with Sevilla, Monaco, Marseille and RB Leipzig all reportedly interested in the France U21 international.

Diop arrives in East London having impressed for Toulouse last season, scoring three goals in 37 appearances in all competitions, helping the side preserve their Ligue 1 status for another campaign.

He was appointed as Toulouse’s captain back in October at just the tender age of 20 and made 95 appearances for the French side after making his debut in 2015.

Diop’s move to West Ham will be his first experience of Premier League football and he becomes Manuel Pellegrini’s second signing of the summer, after Fulham right-back Ryan Fredericks put pen-to-paper on a four-year contract at the London Stadium two weeks ago.

Improving the Hammers’ backline has clearly been a priority for Pellegrini since his appointment and Diop could be joined at the London Stadium by Swansea goalkeeper Lukasz Fabianski in the coming days, with the Polish international also closing in on a move to West Ham, according to reports.

Speaking to West Ham’s website, Diop said: “I am very happy to sign for such a historic, English club, and I hope to show my best here.”

“I am a very ambitious player and West Ham is a very ambitious club, as we’ve seen with the appointment of the new coach. I hope to help the team win lots of games and make the fans happy.”

Director of Football Mario Husillos added: “Issa is a player with fantastic potential who has already shown great quality at such a young age.

“It is a measure of his character and maturity that he was named captain of Toulouse at just 20 years of age, having already established himself in their team as a teenager.

“He has represented France at every youth level up to Under-21 and we believe that he is now ready to make the next step in his career by moving to the Premier League with West Ham United.

“There were many other big clubs interested in signing Issa and we are delighted that he has chosen to join us. We look forward to hopefully seeing him make a big impact next season."