Paper Talk
Saido Berahino is edging closer to a £20million move to Tottenham after being left out of West Brom's match-day squad for their Sunday loss to Chelsea.
Mark Hughes has warned Norwich target Jonathan Walters that Stoke may keep him until his contract runs out next summer as their row threatens to turn ugly.
Championship side Leeds are hoping to complete the signing of Watford striker Fernando Forestieri this week after agreeing a fee of around £3million.
AC Milan GM Adriano Galliani has confirmed the club are in talks to bring Mario Balotelli in on loan from Liverpool.
Barcelona coach Luis Enrique was tight-lipped over rumours involving Neymar and Manchester United on Sunday night.
Everton want Shakhtar Donetsk's Brazilian playmaker Bernard after ending their pursuit of Andriy Yarmolenko.
Crystal Palace are ready to relaunch a move for Charlie Austin, but only if Queens Park Rangers lower their £15million valuation.
Arsenal could land Karim Benzema, who missed Real Madrid's La Liga opener on Sunday - Provided they make a £50million offer.
Super-agent Jorge Mendes has been brought in to try and secure Benfica midfielder Nicolas Gaitan a move to Manchester United.
Manchester United have offered £2m for Odds BK's teenage winger Rafik Zekhnini.
Chelsea have made a fresh enquiry about the availability of Real Madrid star Raphael Varane.
Luis Enrique wouldn't comment on Manchester United's reported mega move for Barcelona's Neymar.
Former West Ham manager Sam Allardyce has poured cold water over reports suggesting he could replace Dick Advocaat as Sunderland boss.
Mario Balotelli's Liverpool nightmare could be ended by former club AC Milan, after CEO Adriano Galliani confirmed the clubs are in talks.
Juventus chief executive Giuseppe Marotta has confirmed the club is on the verge of signing Colombia winger Juan Cuadrado on loan from Chelsea.
Southampton's refusal to sell Victor Wanyama to Tottenham could cost the club £213,000 a week. The midfielder is valued at £18m and has two years on his contract.
Louis van Gaal says only the world's best striker - such as Neymar - will improve Manchester United.
West Brom boss Tony Pulis claimed Saido Berahino was in no fit state to face Chelsea yesterday.
Southampton manager Ronald Koeman issued another hands-off warning over Sadio Mane and Victor Wanyama.
Tony Pulis has revealed there are 15 clubs trying to sign West Brom striker Saido Berahino.
Arsene Wenger has dropped a hint that he could make a marquee addition to his squad before the window closes, with the club linked with Karim Benzema and Edinson Cavani.
Neymar is open to moving to Manchester United from Barcelona, though there is a recognition the transfer is unlikely to occur before the current window closes.
BBC
Arsenal could land Real Madrid striker Karim Benzema, 27, if they make a £50m bid for the France striker. (Daily Star)
Barcelona forward Neymar would consider a move to Manchester United, although the Old Trafford club are set to have to wait until next summer to sign the 23-year-old. (Guardian)
However, Neymar's agent has dismissed speculation linking the Brazil international with a move to Manchester. (GloboEsporte - in Portuguese)
United are also still interested in signing 26-year-old forward Gareth Bale from Real Madrid, but they do not expect to complete that transfer this year either. (Sky Sports)
AC Milan chief executive Adriano Galliani says the Serie A side are in talks with Liverpool over a loan move for 25-year-old striker Mario Balotelli. (Daily Mail via Mediaset Premium)
Juventus are on the verge of signing 27-year-old Chelsea winger Juan Cuadrado on a season-long loan, according to the Italian club's chief executive Giuseppe Marotta. (Sport Mediaset)
West Brom manager Tony Pulis says 15 clubs are interested in signing Saido Berahino after the Baggies boss dropped the 22-year-old for the game against Chelsea on Sunday. (Evening Standard)
Tottenham are set to make a new £20m bid for the striker, having seen an offer of £15m rejected last week. (Telegraph)
Spurs are also interested in signing Southampton midfielder Victor Wanyama, but Saints are refusing to sell the 24-year-old so close to the end of the transfer window. (Mail)
Stoke manager Mark Hughes has warned Norwich target Jonathan Walters, 31, that the Potters may keep the forward until his contract runs out next summer. (Daily Mirror)
Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger says he is ready to take a "gamble" in the transfer market but only for the right players. (Evening Standard)
Wenger believes Liverpool will regret selling winger Raheem Sterling, 20, to Manchester City. (Daily Star)
Former Manchester United defender Gary Neville says John Terry, 34, needs to stay at Chelsea and accept a reduced role rather than leave the club in the same manner Steven Gerrard, 35, departed from Liverpool. (Daily Telegraph)
Leeds are hoping to complete the signing of Watford striker Fernando Forestieri, 25, this week after agreeing a fee of around £3m. (Daily Mirror)
Manchester City goalkeeper Joe Hart is refusing to get carried away by the team's impressive start to the season. (Manchester Evening News)
Manchester United are set to renew their interest in Lazio's 22-year-old forward Felipe Anderson after Barcelona striker Pedro, 28, joined Chelsea. (ESPN)
Best of social media
Following LA Galaxy's 5-1 win over New York City in the MLS on Sunday, ex-Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard grabbed New York midfielder Andrea Pirlo's shirt as a memento. "Fantastic player always a pleasure to share a pitch with this man," he posted on Instagram.
Actor David Hasselhoff seems to be a fan of Yaya Toure judging by a tweet from the Manchester City midfielder following the side's win over Everton on Sunday.
Meanwhile, Toure's team-mate Sergio Aguero was captivated by Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt's victory over American Justin Gaitlin in the men's 100m World Championships final in Beijing. The City striker tweeted: "You are the man, @usainbolt! Congratulations, buddy!"
And Manchester United midfielder Bastian Schweinsteiger was similarly enthused. The Germany international tweeted: "Congratulations to my friend @usainbolt. Great performance!"
And finally
Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho said Pedro's debut for the club in the win at West Brom was good but "wasn't quite Maradona". (Goal.com)
Guardian Rumour Mill
Barry Glendenning
With just over a week remaining until the transfer window closes and the curtains are drawn, Everton are reported to have cooled their interest in Dynamo Kiev winger Andriy Yarmolenko and turned their gaze on Bernard instead. The Brazilian playmaker currently lines out for Shakhtar Donetsk, another Ukrainian club that is currently in turmoil having been exiled to Lviv due to conflict in their own locale.
A diminutive left-footed midfielder who stands just 5ft 4in in his socks, Bernard Anício Caldeira Duarte hails from Belo Horizonte in the Brazilian state of Minas Gerais and is a former team-mate of Ronaldinho and Jô, with whom he played for Atlético Mineiro. Speedy, technically gifted and blessed with plenty of tricks in his locker, Bernard is believed to be unhappy with life in Ukraine and agitating for a move. He wouldn’t be the first Brazilian to leave Shakhtar this summer, with Douglas Costa, Luiz Adriano, Ilsinho and Fernando having already stampeded towards the exit door.
Still reeling from their 4-3 defeat at home to Bournemouth, West Ham are understood to be considering taking Manchester United winger Adnan Januzaj to the Boleyn Ground on loan but will have to duke it out with Everton in the fight for his scraw. In south London, Crystal Palace would like to add Charlie Austin to their stockpile of strikers, but aren’t prepared to pay the £15m QPR want for him. Bournemouth and Newcastle are monitoring the situation with interest.
Having been left out of West Brom’s squad for Sunday’s match against Chelsea because his manager Tony Pulis felt he wasn’t in the right frame of mind to play, Saido Berahino is expected to leave the club before the transfer window closes. Tottenham Hotspur remain the frontrunners in the chase to acquire the striker’s services for £20m, although Pulis claims no fewer than 14 other clubs are interested in securing his signature. “He’s a young lad who needs to be protected,” he said. “There’s loads of stuff going on in his mind and there are loads of clubs, not one but 15, saying things and doing things. I’m not talking any more about it.”
Some reports in the ether suggest Arsenal want Edinson Cavani from PSG, while others say the Gooners will attempt to torpedo the record £42m they paid for Mesut Özil out of the water by offering Real Madrid £50m for Karim Benzema. In Italy, Juventus chief executive Giuseppe Marotta has announced that he’s already agreed to take Chelsea winger Juan Cuadrado to Turin on loan. “It is true, Cuadrado will arrive on loan and we want to give [Juventus manager] Max Allegri the best possile players to work with,” he said. “The opportunity to get Cuadrado presented itself and we took it. Now, it is up to Allegri, who is an excellent coach.”
Elsewhere in Italy, Milan big cheese Adriano Galliani has announced the Serie A side, who were beaten by Fiorentina yesterday, has confirmed that his club are in talks with Liverpool over taking Mario Balotelli back to the San Siro. “There are negotiations with Liverpool for a loan, but we have not reached an agreement on wages,” said Galiani. “We want a loan with a portion of the wages paid by us and another portion by Liverpool. We want Balo because we are convinced this lad realises that this is absolutely his last chance. I hope he understands that.”
Having rejected Norwich City’s £1.5m bid for Jonathan Walters, Stoke City manager Mark Hughes has confirmed he’d like the striker to stay at the Britannia. With just one year left on his contract, the Republic of Ireland international wants an extension which Stoke seem unwilling to give him, while Norwich fans made their feelings about the former Ipswich Town player clear through the medium of song on Saturday, even though he was absent from proceedings through illness. “He wants a bit more in terms of length of contract, that’s fair to say, but we hope we can come to an agreement,” said Hughes. “If he doesn’t sign, then we will probably just keep him and run his contract down.”
And finally, Manchester City could loan central defender Jason Denayer to Bayer Leverkusen, while Leeds United want to take Watford striker Fernando Forestieri to Elland Road for the princely sum of £3m.
Talksport
West Ham target season loan move for Man United starlet Adnan Januzaj
West Ham want Manchester United forward Adnan Januzaj in a season long loan move before the transfer window shuts, talkSPORT understands.
The Belgian youngster, who was frustrated with his bit-part role at Old Trafford last season, has started the last three games for the Red Devils but is still hotly tipped to leave Old Trafford this summer.
Despite his prominent early role, having scored the winner in their 1-0 victory at Aston Villa last weekend, he is willing to move away from the club to find more regular first-team action.
And Hammers chiefs are hoping to persuade them to allow Januzaj to join in a short-term deal.
Manager Slaven Bilic is on the hunt for class in the wide positions, as he looks to boost his attacking options following a disappointing start to the season.
After opening the campaign in fine style with a 2-0 victory at London rivals Arsenal, the Hammers have since suffered back-to-back defeats, with the side booed by fans on Saturday as their downward spiral continued with a 4-3 defeat to top flight new boys Bournemouth.
Bilic, who was named successor to Sam Allardyce at the Upton Park helm this summer, admits he is under pressure already following their Europa League exit and poor recent performances and believes Januzaj could be the answer.
The Hammers may have competition in their chase, however, with Juventus and Everton also linked with the young Belgium international.
Mail
Karren Brady hits back at Olympic Stadium critics and says West Ham will take over the house nobody wanted
West Ham have faced criticism for their move to the OIympic Stadium
But Karren Brady believes West Ham's presence keeps the Olympic legacy
West Ham are set to move into the stadium for the 2016-17 season
By Martin Samuel
Karren Brady is standing on the touchline of what, next season, will be West Ham’s pitch when she cuts to the heart of the matter.
‘You see,’ she says, looking around an arena now readying itself for the Rugby World Cup, ‘anyone could have bought this. Leyton Orient, the Qataris, anyone. But nobody saw it, nobody saw the potential here. So roll back that movie without West Ham. Taxpayers’ money would have poured into a big hole, been concreted over and never seen again.
‘Now the stadium is nearly finished, everyone recognises what is here and says it’s a steal. But it wasn’t a steal when we were doing the negotiations, because where was the queue of rival buyers? Without West Ham this would have been pulled down. It was going to be 25,000 with no roof.
Karren Brady speaks to Sportsmail's Martin Samuel about West Ham's move to the Olympic Stadium
Brady has spearheaded West Ham's move from Upton Park to the Olympic Stadium, scheduled for 2016
West Ham will look to fill the Olympic Stadium with 54,000 supporters for each home league encounter
‘And what would have happened then? Who would have come to that stadium? That’s a legacy? Tottenham just wanted to flatten it and start again. So no Olympic Stadium at all. This is going to be an asset, a national asset. We shouldn’t have to keep justifying ourselves.’
But they do. Each week a fresh guardian of taxpayers’ money pontificates over West Ham’s deal for the Olympic Stadium. From failed bidders to vested interests, all get a say. Brady stands accused of doing too well for her employers. And everyone ignores that bottom line. Without West Ham, what? A miserably small, rain-sodden concrete bowl, with scant relation in size or emotional charge to the site of London’s Olympics. It would be as if the Games never happened.
It is a bright August afternoon: school holidays, yet the Olympic Park is dead. Nobody visits The Orbit monument. The European Hockey Championships are taking place at Eton Manor, to a shrug. Of the 16 sessions, just one is sold out. Deserted, forgotten, the Park needs its anchor tenant. No Olympic legacy is created without one.
The Aquatic Centre in Athens is weed-filled and dry. The iconic Birds Nest in Beijing has moonlighted as a Segway racetrack. Even Barcelona’s Montjuic hosts events sporadically. In one of the greatest tourist destinations in Europe, it often stands empty.
With a small capacity and no roof in a wet country, London’s Olympic Stadium would have quietly expired. So if Brady got the deal of the century, as is suggested — West Ham’s end of the conversion is £15million, the government pay £257m — where were the other entrepreneurs jostling to get in on the act? How come a mid-table Premier League football club had the only vision worth pursuing?
West Ham got the Olympic Stadium twice. Once to buy outright, later as anchor tenants. It was the London Legacy Development Corporation that decided not to go with the first option in which West Ham would have picked up the lion’s share of costs.
The Olympic Stadium is currently being prepared to host games for the upcoming Rugby World Cup
France, New Zealand, Ireland and South Africa will all take the pitch during the Rugby World Cup
An ice bath has already been installed in the dressing room ahead of West Ham's arrival
Brady admits that some of the public are against what she calls the 'West Hamification' of the stadium
Claret and blue tiles line the home side's shower room in tribute to the club's famous home kit
‘That was the initial deal,’ says Brady. ‘The LLDC recognised they had made a mistake by not working out the legacy, saw all the other Olympic Stadiums that were left to rot and decided something permanent had to happen.
‘Our choice was to buy and convert. We would have paid for the floodlights, the roof, the seats, the toilets, the turnstiles — everything would have been down to us. We could easily have funded £200m, particularly with the new television deal and we would have kept all the revenue, giving us a calendar year of income.
‘We won the vote 11-0 and then they changed their minds. They wanted tenants instead. So they collapsed the old process and started a new one, which is where we are now. We came out unanimously as the best bid that time, too. So I don’t think the criticism is fair.
‘There were no sweetheart deals. It was me, on my own, against Allen & Overy, the government and all their advisers. They had more lawyers, more government consultants and officials than I have ever seen in my life and there was one seat on the other side, for me. But I knew they needed a football club and, ultimately, nothing would happen in the Park without us.
‘People think we got something for nothing in that room, but we didn’t. I can’t be the buyer and the seller. I can’t negotiate against myself, my employers and the West Ham fans. My job is to exceed their expectations so when they walk in they say, “You know what, she was right. We had to move here”. And then they don’t care that we don’t own it, or that it is ours for 23 days a year.
‘And when people are spilling out into the park, or going to the athletics or the hockey because we’re cross-promoting and they think of this as home and feel an attachment they didn’t previously, and when there are concerts and the flats are full and this is part of the national fabric, that’s the day I’m looking forward to.
‘Football is on the up right now so this gets called the deal of the century. But West Ham aren’t getting rich because of the stadium. West Ham were getting rich anyway. The television money comes to us whether we’re in the worst ground or the best, the brand value is building because of the success of the football club.
‘Sometimes I feel like we took over a house that nobody wanted, did it up and made a fortune. Is that lucky? Is that the deal of the century or did you have a bit of foresight and make it work?’
Back-to-back home defeats have raised the dark thought that West Ham could arrive as a Championship club, still needing to fill 54,000 seats against Huddersfield. It is the worst-case scenario, but just three games in Brady is not panicking yet. Her point remains that the Olympic Stadium would still have needed its tenant, regardless of short-term status.
‘Simply, without West Ham, this place would have been demolished and the Park would be done,’ she continues. ‘If this is going to get the community usage, it needs a spark, a lot of events, and that’s why a football tenant is the most important because it is our supporters who will fill it and bring the income that pays for it to be maintained.
‘We’re here for 99 years, not one season – and if you took our financial commitment over that time, you could build two Olympic Stadiums for the money.
‘We are leaving a successful stadium that was ours for 365 days a year, giving up income streams, sharing catering revenue, sharing naming rights. Premier League football hits 4.4 billion people around the world. We bring that audience in. What would the naming rights be worth without West Ham?
‘We have to build a whole new club infrastructure, offices, a club shop, install new software, new facilities — all of that is going to cost around £7m on top of what we paid. And then people think we’re in it just to sell up. But every angle was covered. Obviously, West Ham’s worth will increase if we are successful here.
‘The LLDC were worried our owners would have an incentive to sell. But we had the club valued in 2013 when the deal was done and the government receives a massive slice of any profit made on our shares after that. Of course, with the new TV deal, West Ham’s value has risen anyway. But the government still gets its slice, even on stuff that has nothing to do with the new stadium.’
That is the fear, of course. A couple of wide boys on the make, David Sullivan and David Gold — West Ham’s co-owners, with their backgrounds in pornography and the Ann Summers chain — seizing this national treasure and as good as knocking it out from the back of a lorry.
Once West Ham have their 54,000-capacity ground, it is argued, they will sell their shares at a huge profit. Lovely jubbly.
‘Look at it another way,’ Brady says. ‘You’ve got Goodwood, you’ve got Ascot, all these institutions that are leaving British ownership, and we don’t like it. So here are two businessmen, who pay all their tax in the UK and have given personal guarantees for every penny we owe. We can no longer borrow against our ground as an asset, so our owners have underwritten this move, personally.’
I say maybe there is distaste about Sullivan and Gold’s past. That people would have been happier if reputable folk from the spotless environs of the City had done the deal instead.
‘I don’t think owning a chain of underwear shops like David Gold makes you a porn baron,’ she counters. ‘And I think Fifty Shades of Grey is a bit racier than some of the stuff David Sullivan was involved in during his twenties. It shouldn’t taint you forever. David’s early business life shouldn’t define him.
‘We don’t like losing Ascot but when two British taxpayers come along and show a bit of vision and ambition, we don’t like that, either.’
And there is vision in the way the Olympic Stadium has been remodelled. The way the floodlights have been inverted in the new roof structure, the largest cantilevered structure of its kind in Europe.
The Great Britain lounge will permanently celebrate Olympic and other sporting successes, with the World Cup winners’ medals of Bobby Moore, Geoff Hurst and Martin Peters — all owned by West Ham — finally removed from vaults and placed on display.
People forget the elitist nature of the old stadium. There were 400 VIP seats, exclusively used by IOC members. Event tickets cost a fortune. A personal recollection? On August 10, 2012, my wife took one of our sons to the athletics. We paid £900 for the privilege of watching the biggest cheat of the Games, Asli Cakir Alptekin, win the women’s 1,500 metres. She has now returned her gold medal and is serving an eight-year ban, for a second doping offence.
So let’s not pretend that handing the stadium over to the tainted sport of athletics would be any less controversial in today’s climate. As for tickets, the main complaint appears to be that West Ham will make them too cheap.
‘I’ve heard we will be dumping free tickets everywhere to fill this place,’ Brady adds. ‘We won’t. If we do that, nobody will value a seat at West Ham. The Charlton Athletic Supporters Club are complaining, but Charlton can’t sell out. They have empty seats. So it’s not as if we are taking Charlton supporters. It’s that there are not enough of them in the first place. And that’s not our fault.
‘I think it’s quite insulting to Charlton fans to paint them as so fickle that they’ll buy a season ticket for a rival club, just because we’ve got a new ground. No Charlton fan is going to wake up on the first morning of next season and think, “Oh, I’m West Ham now”.’
It is CAST who have complained to the Information Commissioner about the redacted passages in West Ham’s contract, particularly specific figures detailing the split between the club and the LLDC.
‘They think it was all underhand, but there is a reason for the blanks,’ Brady insists. ‘This is a multi- purpose stadium. Other people will want to use it. If all they have to do is open West Ham’s contract and see the figures, that’s the end of the negotiation, isn’t it? The LLDC have no position.’
We watch a tractor with a handy piece of equipment erect rugby posts at each end. France are due here for their Pool D game with Romania on September 23. New Zealand, Ireland, Italy and South Africa will also visit — and the World Cup’s third place play-off will be the stadium’s final act before conversion begins in readiness for West Ham’s arrival in 2016. That is when it will look like West Ham’s home: claret and blue seats and the name above the door.
‘Some people don’t like what we call the “West Hamification” of the stadium,’ Brady says, ‘but it has got to look like our home or our fans are not going to get behind it. And they have got to do that for it to work.
‘I feel a huge sense of personal responsibility that I am part of the delivery programme here. We’ve made a promise to fill this place and bring the Park to life and we will do exactly that. And of all the clubs that could represent Britain, I think West Ham is that club.
‘I don’t think we’re fleecing British taxpayers because we’re taxpayers, too. We will ensure this stadium is full, that jobs are created and regeneration takes place. And I can say that because I’m the one doing it.’
It’s a sales pitch, of course. But it’s a good one. And if you consider the one lonely seat in the room full of government lawyers, you might even conclude your money is in rather good hands.
CAPACITY INCREASE?
West Ham have been so buoyed by the sale of season tickets at the new Olympic Stadium that the club are already discussing increasing capacity to 66,000.
The expansion would make West Ham’s new ground the biggest of any club in London, eclipsing Arsenal’s Emirates Stadium and Tottenham’s new facility next to White Hart Lane.
Despite erratic form at the start of their final season at Upton Park, West Ham’s owners are greatly encouraged by the take-up of tickets at the Olympic venue. They will move in at the start of next season, 2016-17. And with the current capacity at 54,000, there is the potential to fill in space around the top of the arena with another 12,000 seats.
Karren Brady, West Ham vice-chair, said this is something the club are already considering.
‘We always knew this was a possibility and it would certainly seem the interest is there,’ she said. ‘We have to look at the logistics of it because these would be the seats furthest from the pitch, so we have to make sure they are worth having. There is no point sticking someone in a corner with a poor view. But if the sight lines are still good, we could fit in 66,000. It’s a very exciting prospect.’
Inside Futbol
West Ham Make Loan Play For Juventus Striker
West Ham are pushing to take Simone Zaza to Upton Park and have made Juventus an offer to loan the striker for the season.
Juventus snapped Zaza up from Sassuolo earlier this summer, but problems in finding a new club for Spain striker Fernando Llorente mean he may be loaned out.
And West Ham have put themselves at the front of the queue to sign Zaza.
According to Italian broadcaster Sport Mediaset, West Ham are prepared to pay €3m to take Zaza on loan for the season, but also want an option to buy the player permanently for €15m, should he impress in England.
Zaza currently earns €1.5m per year in Turin, a sum the Hammers would have little problem affording.
West Ham have already done business with Juventus this summer, signing defender Angelo Ogbonna from the Italian champions.
Currently suffering an injury crisis to their strikers, West Ham are desperate to make attacking additions before the transfer window slams shut.
Zaza Youtube
Mirror
West Ham's loan move for Emmanuel Adebayor is back on - and Tottenham could subsidise his wages
By Darren Lewis
Spurs may pay some of the player's £100,000-a-week wages - a shift from the north Londoners' refusal to subsidise the move eight months ago
West Ham's bid to sign Emmanuel Adebayor from Tottenham is back on.
Talks aimed at a loan deal for the out-of-favour striker were reignited over the weekend.
Should the two clubs reach agreement over the next few days, the Hammers will take Adebayor, 31, for the final year of his White Hart Lane contract.
It is believed the deal could even see Spurs pay some of the player's £100,000-a-week wages - a shift from the north Londoners' refusal to subsidise Adebayor playing for their rivals eight months ago.
West Ham are desperately seeking reinforcements up front with Enner Valencia, Mauro Zarate and Andy Carroll - three of their four main strikers - all out injured.
Carroll is expected back next week after a freak injury pulling on his shoes recently set his recovery back by seven to 10 days. But Zarate is out for 5-6 weeks with a calf injury and Valencia for another two months with knee and ankle injuries.
West Ham have an interest in Toulouse frontman Wissam Ben Yedder and have made two bids, the latest for £5million, for Galatasaray striker Buruk Yilmaz.
But it is Adebayor who looks closest to becoming the next in at Upton Park.
Spurs chairman Daniel Levy, who dramatically blocked the January loan within hours of the deadline, reopened talks earlier this month.
They subsequently broke down but - as revealed by Mirror Sport - Adebayor rejected a move to Aston Villa to hold out for the Upton Park switch.
Villa believed they had landed the Togo striker as they had agreed to pay his £100,000-a-week wages. But Adebayor stalled, forcing them to lose patience and look elsewhere.
Meanwhile QPR boss Chris Ramsey has confirmed West Ham have been trying to sign Robert Green. Mirror Sport revealed last week that the Irons has tried - and failed - to sign their former keeper ahead of Friday's midday deadline to play against Bournemouth with Adrian suspended.
The deal is understood to have broken down because Rangers wanted out-of-favour defender James Collins as part of it but the 32-year-old was unwilling to drop down a division.
Ramsey said: "They [West Ham] do want Robert but no deal has been cut. Nothing firm has been agreed."
