Simone Zaza could be offered an escape route from his Premier League hell with Valencia interested in signing the striker on loan for the remainder of the season.
The Italy international joined West Ham from Juventus on an initial season-long loan deal in the summer but has failed at the club and has even dropped down the pecking order for the Premier League strugglers.
West Ham will reportedly be forced to pay Juventus £20m to make Zaza’s deal permanent if he plays 14 times as part of his loan agreement, which means the forward only needs to make three more appearances for the clause to be activated.
Slaven Bilic has previously rejected suggestions the clause plays a part in his team selection but Zaza hasn’t started a game since October 22 and looks destined to leave the club in January, with Valencia keen on his services.
“Zaza is a player that I tried to sign this summer at all costs but I couldn’t achieve it because his arrival meant [then Valencia player] joining Juventus,” Valencia’s sporting director Jesus Garcia Pitarch told Superdeporte, via ESPN.
“Andre wanted to go to Barcelona and hence our three negotiations with Juventus for their players [Mario] Lemina, Hernanes and Zaza ended.
“Basically the biggest challenge is that the salary that he has at West Ham is absolutely exorbitant, but that could be negotiated. I don’t know what the coach thinks about this, but if we could reduce his wages, he is a player that we can evaluate.”
Zaza is still waiting to open his account for West Ham, having failed to find the back of the net in 461 minutes of action in the Premier League.
For more stats on Simone Zaza, click here to visit his WhoScored player page
