West Ham manager Avram Grant eyes Arsenal's Nicklas Bendtner to help with relegation battle

West Ham manager Avram Grant eyes Arsenal's Nicklas Bendtner to help with relegation battle
West Ham want to sign Arsenal striker Nicklas Bendtner – but have balked at the £15 million asking price – after dramatically ditching their plans to replace Avram Grant as manager.
Grant is now expected to remain in charge until the end of the season at least following Martin O’Neill’s decision not to succeed him at Upton Park.
However, he will have to repair his strained relationship with vice-chairman Karren Brady after West Ham issued a denial on Tuesday that she had texted players to ask their opinion of the manager.
The club want to sign three players to bolster their squad and are hoping to quickly move on from the fiasco over Grant’s future, and O’Neill’s prevarication over whether to take the job on.
The saga has not only damaged West Ham’s reputation but also their chances of avoiding relegation.
Having finally made the decision to retain Grant, who was resigned to leaving before Saturday’s game away to Everton, the club will hope they can move on quickly and save their season.
On Tuesday night West Ham co-chairman David Sullivan was in defiant mood, telling Telegraph Sport: “We are a decent club, Avram is a decent person and one who deserves our support.
"We have always supported our managers over an 18-year period [at Birmingham City and West Ham] and I feel it’s vital that every WHU supporter rallies behind the club for the last 15 games.
“If we all pull together we can still survive, though I accept that the task ahead is not an easy one.”
West Ham have agonised over Grant’s future for weeks and were always unsure whether O’Neill would accept the post. Other candidates, including Sam Allardyce and Martin Jol, were considered.
However, it is understood there was a verbal agreement with O’Neill after salaries and backroom staff had been discussed. But there was a change of heart from O’Neill.
It is thought that the former Aston Villa manager felt everything was too rushed and was unsure whether the team were good enough to avoid relegation.
He was also concerned by the way in which it was reported on Saturday that he was definitely taking the job.
The club will now push ahead with plans to improve the squad in the final two weeks of the January transfer window, although they are hamstrung by a lack of finance. That situation may improve slightly with the expected departure of midfielder Valon Behrami.
West Ham will now consider making a loan bid for Bendtner, although Arsenal have indicated they would prefer to sell. Arsène Wenger may permit the Dane to go out on loan but only towards the end of the transfer window.
The dilemma West Ham now face is do they wait and see what happens or, with only two domestic loans allowed, and one already taken up by Wayne Bridge, do they go for a different target now?
There has been a tentative inquiry to bring Joe Cole back to the club from Liverpool. The chances of securing the midfielder, who earns in excess of £80,000-a-week at Anfield, are rated at no more than 10 per cent.
West Ham were hopeful that Robbie Keane would eventually decide to join them from Tottenham, despite his wage demands and the stipulation that he wants a £1 million bonus if the club avoid relegation, but the chances of that deal going through have faded.
West Ham issued a statement yesterday morning to confirm that Grant was staying although there was also a vow to “identify the source” of allegations about internal strife at the club and the role played by Brady.
Her relationship with Grant has been difficult. First they had a public spat over the collapse of Steve Sidwell’s move to Upton Park and relations were made worse by yesterday’s claims about her alleged texts to players.
This was furiously denied by West Ham, who have also started legal proceedings over what they claimed were “unhelpful and untrue comments” about Brady.
A club statement added: “Karren has worked tirelessly to improve all aspects of the club’s operation.”
Given the distasteful way in which Grant’s predecessor, Gianfranco Zola, left the club, West Ham are in the middle of firefighting another public relations own goal while the team sit at the bottom of the Premier League.
There is a groundswell of sympathy for Grant even though many at the club feel that the Israeli is not only fortunate to be the manager, but has done little to demonstrate that he has the ability to steer West Ham to safety.
The mistake West Ham made was to appoint a poor manager in the first place and one who has gathered just four league wins all season. That mistake has been compounded by the way he has been treated.
West Ham may turn to a plan they considered before Christmas and appoint another coach to work alongside Grant. A number of high-profile names, including Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink and Paolo Di Canio, have been under consideration.

» Avram Grant set to stay at West Ham after Martin O'Neill declines job offer
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