Big Sam admits Squillaci bid

West Ham United manager Sam Allardyce has confirmed he did make an enquiry to sign Arsenal defender Sebastien Squillaci on loan.

Hammers miss out on loan signing of Arsenal defender

West Ham United manager Sam Allardyce has confirmed he did make an enquiry to sign Arsenal defender Sebastien Squillaci on loan. Squillaci has been restricted to just one appearance in the Carling Cup this season due to injury and was linked with a temporary switch to Upton Park. Allardyce is keen to improve his defensive options and was also rumoured to be interested in signing Leeds United's experienced centre-half Andy O'Brien. He made an approach for French stopper Squillaci, but revealed he was unable to conclude a deal to bring the 31-year-old to Upton Park. "Yes it is true, but the technical difficulty was that another loan would have meant that he couldn't go anywhere else this season," said Allardyce. "We couldn't go any further with that, unfortunately." Squillaci joined Arsenal in 2010 from Sevilla and he has made 33 appearances in all competitions during his time at Emirates Stadium.