Wednesday 13 December 2017 00:01, UK
West Ham boss David Moyes has admitted he would be interested in signing Jack Wilshere in January if the Arsenal midfielder is made available.
Wilshere has been largely limited to Europa League appearances and the occasional substitute role in the Premier League for the Gunners this season.
But the 25-year-old, who has six months left on his contract, is in line to start against West Ham on Wednesday due to an injury to Aaron Ramsey.
Moyes, who believes the January transfer window is vital if West Ham are to climb away from relegation trouble, said: "Jack Wilshere would be someone who we'd have to look at if he was available.
"I also want to make sure we're looking at players who can be at the club for a long period and not just in for a short period.
"Then there's also the short-term fix for me which is how do we get enough wins between now and the end of the season? There's a balance between that.
"That's why those decisions will have to be mutually taken with [head of recruitment] Tony Henry, the chairman and myself to make the right deals.
"I've got an idea of where I need to strengthen. We've already said there's a little bit of an imbalance but that can happen at football clubs.
"Could January be the difference between staying up and going down? I do believe it could.
"I think if the right players are available we should try and do something. If we can get the right players, that's the big part of it."
West Ham also expressed an interest in signing Arsenal forward Olivier Giroud in the summer, but were unable to agree a deal.
Moyes added: "We've got a lot of strikers so I think for us to be linked to strikers at the moment might not necessarily be the right thing.
"But who knows? I think Olivier Giroud is a talented footballer and has a record of scoring goals."