West Ham unlikely to be active in January, says Bilic

The Reds have seen an upturn in performances since former Borussia Dortmund boss Jurgen Klopp took over from Brendan Rodgers, and having claimed… “I don’t know whether the agreement is for April or May but the deal will be done”, he said.

The German coach was pleased with the victory at Sunderland, believing it was an indication of his team’s growing strength of character ― although he still feels that there is room for improvement.

In midfield, however, potential injury to Jordan Henderson could force Klopp’s hand.

Sturridge made the last of his six appearances this season at the start of December but he could be involved at Upton Park after recovering from a hamstring injury.

Liverpool forward Divock Origi will miss around three weeks after a scan revealed he has a minor hamstring tear.

Slaven Bilic, West Ham: “Some people would give more chance [at the title] to Manchester United or Liverpool than to Leicester – without any logical reasons about what is happening on the pitch because Leicester is much better than those two clubs at the moment”. It’s brilliant. A step we have to take if we want to become bigger, but you are not only becoming bigger by moving stadiums. “We are not looking to improve our squad with a number of players”, he said. “I am delighted he is going to be with us for that game”.

West Ham, who are now eighth in the Premier League with 29 points from 19 games, have been linked with a January move for Besiktas midfielder Atiba Hutchinson, a player who turned out under Bilic in Istanbul. “Depending on how he goes today he will be in the squad”, Bilic told reporters. But it’s the same situation for almost all the teams – we have two [cup] games more but that’s how it is.