---
title: "Hammers lose ground in pursuit of striker"
canonical: "https://readwestham.com/2017/04/04/hammers-lose-ground-pursuit-striker/"
type: "post"
language: "en-GB"
author: "Ryan Darby"
section: "West Ham News"
published: "2017-04-04T13:07:26Z"
modified: "2017-04-04T13:07:26Z"
---

# Hammers lose ground in pursuit of striker

West Ham have been dealt a blow in their pursuit of Juventus striker Mario Mandzukic.

[Turkish-Football.com](https://turkish-football.com/euro-giants-talks-west-ham-target-mandzukic/) claim that Besiktas have held talks with the well-travelled striker’s agent Ivan Cvjetkovic, who has previously been linked with a move to the London Stadium.

The Croatian striker is thought to be considering a move to the Turkish league after falling down the pecking order in Turin.

Mandzukic has scored just five goals all season and the prospect of boosting his goalscoring tally, in what could be considered as an easier and less competitive league is appealing to the striker.

The Hammers were hoping that having Slaven Bilic in charge would be enough to lure the former Atletico Madrid forward to the club.

A striker is likely to be at the top of Bilic’s summer wish list this summer as they seek reinforcement in that area of the pitch. Michail Antonio is currently the club’s top goalscorer with just nine goals this season.