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The exploits of Leicester and Tottenham last season will have been a great source of inspiration for all other Premier League clubs. The promised land of the Champions League was starting to feel like a four or five horse race every season, with the biggest and richest battling it out at the top and leaving the rest to fight amongst themselves. But last season proved that money can only get you so far and you need to build a motivated, hardworking team, full of drive and passion.

In an attempt to secure the services of a 'marquee' player West Ham United are going to have to push the boat out, and the proposed move to sign James Rodriguez from Real Madrid is certainly a statement of intent, if indeed it transpires to be as real as it currently seems. Splashing out around £65 Million is a massive investment as well as being a humungous gamble, especially for a club like West Ham who have only recently managed to claw themselves out of a mountain of debt inherited by the two Davids, Sullivan & Gold.

Midnight on July 16th Central Chinese time marked the end of the Chinese Football federation's transfer window, and as such removes one major cash endowed player from the lunacy that is going on in the European transfer window! Quite how much the emerging Chinese super league is effecting the fees being commanded by players and their agents is difficult to quantise, but there has undoubtedley been a a seismic shift when it comes to football's economic power houses.

West Ham United have been drawn against the winner of Shakhtyor Soligorsk of Belarus or Domžale of Slovalia for the next round of the Europa League Cup competition. The matches are due to be played on the 28th of July and the 4th of August, Hammers will be hoping that the home leg of the tie can be played on a date that suits their Olympic Stadium schedules. - Ed

As the signing of Colombian hit man Carlos Bacca from AC Milan draws to it's conclusion, there will inevitably be movement out of West Ham United for one or both of Diafra Sakho and Enner Valencia, with West Bromwich Albion and Lazio being the interested parties.

You know how the saying goes for those who can still afford to use public transport, "just like waiting for a bus, you wait an age for nothing and then suddenly three turn up one after another'. There are certain similarities between that expression and being a Hammers fan eagerly awaiting news of transfer arrivals, it's all quiet and then suddenly bang!

Ever since his arrival at the Old Boleyn Ground courtesey of the dubious enigma that is Kia Joorabchian and his multi million dollar' financial clearance house' Media Sports Investment, Carlos Tevez has courted controversy. West Ham ended up paying a £5 Million fine and a further £20 Million in unfair compensation payments to lower league strugglers Sheffield United for incorrect player registrations as both Tevez and Barcleona's Javier Mascherano were jointly owned by two different parties, contrary to FA and Premier League legislation.

Sources close to Gokhan Tore have told the Turkish Football Association that the 24 year old has passed his West Ham medical and is expected to sign a one year loan deal with West Ham United later today (friday july 8th). The deal incorporates the option to sign Tore on a full time basis when the loan expires, and is the result of a massive amount of effort by West Ham to get Slaven Billic his man.

The silver lining in the cloud for all those Hammers fans who were unable to get a season ticket and have now had to join an endless waiting list, is that West Ham United will feature in three live Sky TV broadcasts in August.

Obviously there will be many twists and turns in the hugely inflated transfer market this summer, but forwards seem to always be the recurring theme, and the forwards at West Ham United are no exception. On the face of it Hammers are fairly well catered for with Andy Carroll, Diafra Sakho and Enner Valencia all competing for the lone striker role that is part of Slaven Billic's normal team line up, however beneath the surface there are serious causes for concern.