Bordeaux block West Ham's Chamakh bid
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Your support makes all the difference.Marouane Chamakh is resigned to staying at Bordeaux for the coming season, despite claiming he has recently been approached by West Ham United. The striker has wanted to leave Les Girondins since the end of last term, with the Premier League his preferred destination, but the French club are believed to have stood in the way of potential moves to Sunderland and Arsenal.
West Ham are the latest team to be linked with the Morocco international, who has confirmed their interest, but he does not envisage leaving Bordeaux before the transfer window closes at the end of the month.
"Of course the transfer window isn't shut but I am pessimistic about my chances of going," he said. "West Ham are the latest to come in. It's only in the past week that they have shown an interest. But I am seeing what happened with Arsenal all over again – the problem is Bordeaux. So it is very tricky."
The Arsenal manager, Arsène Wenger, is not willing to meet Bordeaux's valuation of Chamakh, whose contract will expire next summer.
Sunderland, meanwhile, had no chance of signing the striker with Bordeaux coach Laurent Blanc insisting he would only enter talks with a club he estimates are bigger than Les Girondins.
"As much as I managed to understand the attitude of the club about refusing Sunderland, I was surprised there hadn't been an arrangement with Arsenal, even if it was a small offer. It is Arsenal after all," Chamakh added.
"So, there I was disappointed. I am still, but I have moved on. I had to rediscover my smile and the pleasure of playing."
Chamakh has started the new Ligue 1 campaign in impressive style, scoring three goals in Bordeaux's opening two matches. He is continuing to put himself in the shop window with his performances, but he knows sealing a move to England depends entirely on the attitude of the French club.
"It's for that reason that I no longer want to see clubs directly – Bordeaux have to firstly come to an agreement with them. Then I will begin talks after," he said.
Chamakh claims he will commit himself to Bordeaux for the rest of the season if he has not found a new club by Monday. "I am going to wait until Monday to announce that I will stay," he said.
The Lyons captain, Sidney Govou, has been ruled out for a month with a thigh injury. The France winger sustained the problem in the first half of Les Gones' Ligue 1 match against Valenciennes on Saturday night.
Govou is not expected to return until mid-September. He will therefore miss both legs of Lyons' Champions League play-off round showdown with Anderlecht, as well as the next two Ligue 1 fixtures.
13
The number of goals Chamakh scored in 34 league games last term for Bordeaux.
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