West Ham United are believed to be interested in signing Sunderland forward Jermain Defoe.
Slaven Bilic has avoided the question, when asked whether West Ham United are interested in signing Sunderland forward Jermain Defoe by the Chronicle.
The veteran striker looks likely to leave the Stadium of Light in the summer, after David Moyes’ side’s relegation was confirmed last weekend.
It has been suggested that a return to West Ham is something which may interest both parties.
But Bilic was insisting that his focus was purely on helping West Ham beat Tottenham Hotspur, rather than transfer rumours at his press conference earlier today.
“Now is not the time to talk about transfers,” Bilic said, when asked if West Ham are interested in Defoe.
“We are talking about them with the scouts and the board. It is now time to talk about Tottenham.”
If West Ham do want to sign Defoe, they face competition for the England international’s signature.
The Sunderland Echo claim that Bournemouth are leading the race for the prolific hitman, with a number of other Premier League sides also interested.
Defoe has hit 14 goals for Sunderland this term, but wants to move on to increase his chance of playing for England at the 2018 World Cup.
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