After weeks of negotiations, West Ham have finally completed the signing of Besiktas winger Gokhan Tore or an initial season long loan.
The Hammers will pay the Turkish side £2m to take Tore on loan for the 2016/17 season, and the deal includes a purchase option for £10m at any point over the duration of the loan.
Tore’s arrival sees the Turkish international attacker finally reunited with Slaven Bilic, the man who initially signed him for Besiktas in 2013 where he impressed on loan from Rubin Kazan before he made his move permanent in the summer of 2014 for £3.8m.
Born in the German city of Koln, Besiktas was snapped up from the Bayer Leverkusen academy by Chelsea. He never made an appearance for the Blues and spent time with Hamburg and Rubin Kazan before finding a home in Turkey with Besiktas.
Slaven Bilic certainly knows what he’s getting out of Gokhan Tore, but not many West Ham fans do. We sat down with Emre Sarigul of Turkish-Football.com to get the lowdown on our latest signing.
After coming through at Chelsea, Gokhan Tore’s career didn’t really take off before Bilic and Besiktas swooped for him. How has he adapted to Turkish football?
Tore looked destined to join a long list of names that were tipped for greatness as a youngster only to never live up to their reputation. The turning point in his career was playing under the stewardship of Slaven Bilic.
The current West Ham boss brought out the best in Tore and managed to add elements to his game that were previously missing. Tore established himself as one of the most sought after players in the league during the two seasons Bilic was in charge of the club.
What do you make of Tore’s current playing style, and how it would adapt to the Premier League?
Tore is an explosive winger with great technical ability. He likes to take on players and cut in from the wing. He still has aspects of his game he could improve such crossing and his discipline. He is a physical player and grew up in a Premier League academy so will know what to expect.
Slaven Bilic has a strong rapport with Gokhan, why do you think this is?
Bilic is responsible for putting Tore back on the map. He had a close relationship with Tore. He understood he had a troubled background and empathised with him. He earned Tore’s respect and got him playing with discipline and an improved work ethic.
Bilic generally was well loved by the team and the fans. His man management skills went down very well especially with emotional players like Tore.
Should West Ham sign Tore on a permanent basis, the total cost of the deal would be approximately £12m. Does this represent value for money?
The £12m fee would have been a reasonable fee but getting him on loan with a buyout clause is a bargain. If Bilic gets him playing at a high level again he may well have got West Ham a fantastic deal.
How will Gokhan Tore fit in at West Ham, and will he be a success?
Tore is the kind of player fans love. He is skilful, will take on opposition players and has explosive acceleration. Slaven Bilic obviously sees Tore in his plans as he has wanted him for the past season.
Tore knows what to expect from Bilic and how he sets his teams out. I don’t expect him to need a long settling in period due to his understanding of Bilic’s demands and tactics. He is also no stranger to London and well schooled in Premier League football.
My only concern would be his discipline and his off the field antics. As you probably have heard he is known as a bit of a bad boy but to be fair he has cleaned up his act – since the gun incident with Omer Toprak and Hakan Calhangolu – and only has been sent off once for Besiktas.
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