Soccer: West Ham sign Repka from Fiorentina

West Ham have signed Czech defender Thomas Repka from Italian club Fiorentina for an estimated £5m.

The player had agreed personal terms with the Premiership club earlier this week, but the deal seemed to have collapsed after Rapka claimed Fiorentina owed him a pay-off.

West Ham have been seeking an experienced defender since Stuart Pearce’s move to Manchester City during the summer and Igor Stimac’s return to Croatia to play for Hajduk Split.