Source: Daily_Mail
West Ham move for Chamakh with Zola happy to fight on without £5m Collins
Gianfranco Zola has rubber-stamped the sale of James Collins to Stoke for £5million to fund a move for Bordeaux striker Marouane Chamakh.
The West Ham manager knows he must sell before he can buy and, given the surfeit of centre backs at Upton Park, is prepared to lose Collins. Calum Davenport could also move to Nottingham Forest.
Zola's priority remains a striker and, with Arsenal's interest in Chamakh on the wane, he is keen to tie up a deal for the forward as soon as possible.
West Ham have prepared a second offer of around £5.2m, with possible add-ons which could increase the figure by £1.4m.
Reports in France say this has been rejected, but the east London club are expected to return with a further improved bid.
Bordeaux have lowered the asking price to £10m but may be required to bend rather than risk losing Chamakh for nothing when his contract expires next summer.
Another option for Zola remains Barcelona's Eidur Gudjohnsen, who is available for about £5m, although matching his £60,000-a-week wages would prove difficult.
On the move: Collins will move to the Britannia in a £5m deal
Reports have been dismissed that Zola was on the brink of quitting after being told he must sell key players to ease the financial worries of West Ham's majority stake holder, Straumur.
Zola met West Ham's board two weeks ago and accepted that any recruitment would have to be funded by player sales. At present it would seem unlikely that Matthew Upson will be one such sale but a bid in excess of £15m would be hard to resist.
Any cash from transfers would be reinvested in the team as Straumur, who have a 70 per cent stake in West Ham's parent company CB Holding, have a moratorium on debt payments in place until December and are under no obligation to hand over funds to their creditors.
The process of converting Straumur into an asset management company is ongoing, with their creditors expected to ratify the proposal next month.
If approved, Straumur will retain their stake in West Ham via CB Holding. If not, their share will be sold to the highest bidder.
