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With their efforts to sign a striker failing to materialise, and Enner Valencia being unavailable for at least three months, the West Ham board are believed to have adopted a plan 'b' approach, and are now looking at 'cover' strikers instead of one marquee signing. Mindful of the all your eggs in one basket big risk strategy, it appears that the club have turned their attention to Swansea's unwanted striker Michu.

Hmm, Joey Barton instead of Alex Song? Bit of a strange one, but Hammers boss Slaven Billic has sanctioned a move for Joey Barton, who is a free agent and is undergoing a medical within the next 24 Hrs, apparently after a chat with Julian Dicks about cover for the holding midfield role played so brilliantly against Arsenal by debutant Reece Oxford .

When Mauro Zarate arrived at the Boleyn Ground, he was clearly a David Sullivan signing, and as such the striker was met with a clear degree of negativity by then manager Sam Allardyce. As a result of Allardyce's alacrity, Zarate was given the cold shoulder and eventually farmed out on loan to QPR.