Aston Villa, West Ham United failed with Nikola Kalinic bids?

Premier League duo Aston Villa and West Ham United failed with bids to sign Croatian international Nikola Kalinic over the summer, according to reports.

The 27-year-old striker, who has six goals in 22 appearances for his country, spent two seasons with Blackburn Rovers between 2009 and 2011.

However, he turned down the chance to return to England, and instead chose to join Serie A side Fiorentina from Ukrainian outfit Dinipro, reports Tutto Mercato.

Kalinic has made a bright start to his career in Italy, scoring five goals in his first seven appearances for Paulo Sousa's side.

Kalinic has worked with Hammers boss Slaven Bilic previously, when the former Besiktas manager was in charge of the Croatian national side between 2006 and 2012.