West Ham are ready to make a stunning move for Arsenal's Olivier Giroud.
France international Giroud confirmed last week that he “will not settle for another year with such limited playing time” at the Emirates.
There has already been interest in the 30-year-old from French giants Marseille and several clubs in Italy, but the Hammers are confident they can match any offer and keep the £20million striker in London.
Gunners boss Arsene Wenger and chief executive Ivan Gazidis were in Nice last week, reportedly talking to Lyon president Jean Michael-Aulas about Alexandre Lacazette, while their desire to sign 18-year-old sensation Kylian Mbappe from Monaco is also confirmed — and neither frontman would join to play second-fiddle to Giroud.
In the season just ended, Alexis Sanchez was often preferred through the middle, and Wenger went with Danny Welbeck ahead of Giroud in the FA Cup final.
Giroud, capped 63 times by France, cost Arsenal £13m when he joined from Montpellier in 2012 and has scored 69 goals in 118 Premier League appearances for the club.
But despite that impressive record he still splits opinion among Gunners fans and, despite the respect Wenger has for a player who worked his way up from the French football’s lower tiers, he isn’t automatically Plan A for his manager.