A spokesman for Besiktas has confirmed that West Ham United are not interested in signing German striker Mario Gomez, after the Turkish club received assurances from Hammers manager Slaven Bilic that the club aren’t pursuing a deal for the Fiorentina man, although Besiktas won’t get such favours from other clubs.
West Ham have been chasing a striker all summer but their efforts so far have failed, despite there being less than two weeks left before the start of the Premier League season. It seems Gomez is another name crossed off the list of transfer targets, after Besiktas confirmed that the London club aren’t interested in the 31-year-old.
Speaking to the Dogan news agency in Turkey, and quoted by Calciomercato, Metin Albayrak said: “This morning I spoke on the phone with Slaven Bilic, who assured me that West Ham are not interested.“
However, the Besiktas spokesperson confirmed that two other major European clubs are interested in the striker, saying: “We know that Mario is in contact with Barcelona and Borussia Dortmund.” He also reiterated Besiktas’ desire to bring Gomez back for another year, after he scored 26 goals in 33 Super Lig games on loan from Fiorentina last season.
Slaven Bilic still wants to add another striker to the West Ham squad before the window closes, with Juventus’ Mario Mandzukic and Carlos Bacca of AC Milan both thought to be on the shortlist.
