Gianluca Scamacca has revealed Roberto Mancini was influential in his decision to leave Sassuolo for West Ham, with the Italy head coach believing a Premier League move was best for his development.
Scamacca, who had been linked with the likes of Paris Saint-Germain earlier in the transfer window, signed a five-year contract with the option of an extra 12 months at the London Stadium on Tuesday.
West Ham have reportedly agreed to pay an initial £30.5million (€36m) for the towering centre-forward, who scored 16 Serie A goals for Sassuolo last term.
Among players to have scored 15 or more goals in a top-five European league in 2021-22, only three were younger than 23-year-old Scamacca, namely Erling Haaland (22 goals), Vinicius Junior (17) and Dusan Vlahovic (24).
Scamacca's form with the Neroverdi led to him breaking into Mancini's Italy squad, making seven appearances for the Azzurri since his debut last year.
The striker made UEFA Nations League starts against Germany and England in June as Mancini looked to remould Italy's attack in the wake of their failure to reach the Qatar World Cup.
After making his move to east London, Scamacca revealed he had discussed his future with Manchester City's 2011-12 title-winning boss.
"We spoke before I came here, and he said it was the best place for me," Scamacca told West Ham's website.
"[He wanted me] playing in a tournament that would help me to get better and improve, because the Premier League is the best league."
Scamacca could make his Premier League debut when West Ham face Mancini's former side at the London Stadium on August 7.
Mainoo one of three England players to pull out of Nations League squad
England have been dealt a triple injury blow before their Nations League matches, with Kobbie Mainoo, Morgan Gibbs-White and Ezri Konsa pulling out of the squad.
Earlier on Monday, the Three Lions were boosted by the confirmation that Harry Kane's injury against Eintracht Frankfurt was not serious, and he would be able to play a part in the October fixtures.
However, the trio did not arrive with the rest of the squad at St. George's Park, and Lee Carsley is not expected to call up any replacements.
Mainoo made his international debut earlier this year and has made 10 appearances for England, with one of those caps coming under Carsley against Ireland, but a knee injury that forced him off for Manchester United against Aston Villa will keep him out.
Konsa was also forced off in the second half of that match, having suffered a hamstring injury in the 0-0 draw.
Gibbs-White, who was handed his senior England debut by the manager last month, also sustained his issue on Sunday, in a 1-1 draw with Chelsea. At under-21 level, the midfielder made 15 appearances under Carsley, with only six players featuring more under him.
England host Greece at Wembley on Thursday before travelling to Helsinki to face Finland on Sunday.
Kane fit to play for England in Nations League
Bayern Munich confirmed Harry Kane did not suffer a serious injury against Eintracht Frankfurt and will be available for England in the international break.
Kane, who has already netted 10 goals in nine appearances for Bayern in all competitions this season, was substituted in the 72nd minute of their 3-3 draw with a suspected thigh injury.
The England captain was assessed by the Football Association's (FA) doctors on Monday, with the German side announcing no "structural injury" was found.
Kane, who made his 100th appearance for England during their last match against Finland, will be available for the return leg in Helsinki, and their match against Greece at Wembley prior to that.
While the striker has been given the all-clear for international action, Dayot Upamecano and Mathys Tel have both withdrawn from their respective France squads.
Upamecano scored against Frankfurt but was subsequently taken off in the second half after also sustaining a thigh problem, while Tel is suffering with a shoulder injury.
Injury forces Militao out of Brazil's World Cup qualifiers
Eder Militao will miss Brazil's upcoming World Cup qualifiers against Chile and Peru due to a thigh injury.
The defender, who also missed September's fixtures due to a leg injury, first felt some discomfort against Atletico Madrid on September 29.
Though he has featured for Real Madrid since, he flew out to Sao Paulo to undergo checks on the issue, where the national team confirmed the extent of the injury.
"[Militao] underwent tests this Sunday... which revealed a minor muscle injury in his left thigh that will prevent him from playing," the CBF said in a statement.
He is the second Madrid player to pull out of the Brazil squad, with Vinicius Junior also unfit to play after suffering a neck injury.
Brazil sit fifth in South America's qualification table after eight matches, with 10 points.
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