West Ham United

David Gold "delighted" with Simone Zaza capture

By Daniel Lewis, Senior Reporter | 28 August 2016

West Ham United co-chairman David Gold confesses that it has been "tough" bringing in a star striker, but is "delighted" with the arrival of Simone Zaza from Juventus.

West Ham United co-chairman David Gold has aired his delight at getting a deal to sign Simone Zaza from Juventus over the line, and revealed that he hopes to make the transfer permanent next summer.

The 25-year-old arrives at the London Stadium on an initial season-long loan, which can be made into a long-term move at the end of the campaign for a combined fee of £25m.

Sullivan admits that it has been a "tough summer" for the Hammers in terms of landing their top attacking targets, but is happy with the club's overall spending after surpassing the £60m mark for this season's maiden campaign at their new East London home.

"I am delighted that we have been able to announce the signing of Simone Zaza from Juventus and this is a major coup for the football club," he told United's official website. "It has been a tough summer, particularly for David Sullivan and Slaven Bilic who have been working so hard behind the scenes to pull this off and at last it has happened.

"These big deals often go to the wire, but our supporters should be excited about this signing. Simone is a top quality striker and has great credentials. We hope he can have an immediate impact and, if he is as successful as we all hope he will be, Simone will join us on a permanent basis next summer.

"I need to pay tribute to my co-chairman David Sullivan who has worked so hard to achieve this, because these are mega deals and we have now taken our summer spending to more than £60million. The board have always stated that we will reinvest the revenue raised from the club's move to London Stadium and put together a squad that fits in with our stunning surroundings.

"We have to get the transfers right because there have been a number of clubs who have not done so in the past and have lived to regret it. There are some big name players who have not adjusted. You have to do due diligence on these new signings and we are thrilled to have secured his signature. You can see he is a talent and if he gets an opportunity in front of goal, you would not bet against him scoring."

West Ham have also recruited Andre Ayew, Arthur Masuaku, Jonathan Calleri, Edimilson Fernandes, Gokhan Tore, Ashley Fletcher, Havard Nordtveit, Sofiane Feghouli and Manuel Lanzini during the summer transfer window.