New report suggests West Ham wanted Hatem Ben Arfa as forward remains without a club

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West Ham United were interested in signing forward Hatem Ben Arfa over the summer as the out of contract Frenchman remains without a club.

West Ham signed Sebastien Haller, Albian Ajeti, Pablo Fornals, Goncalo Cardoso and back-up goalkeepers Roberto and David Martin before the transfer window closed last month.

There were a host of high-profile departures too with Andy Carroll, Marko Arnautovic, Adrian and Javier Hernandez leaving.

Changing of the guard up front

With Lucas Perez also having left it means Manuel Pellegrini dispensed of all four of his senior strikers from last season.

Since Hernandez departed for Sevilla in a somewhat surprise move on Monday, there has been speculation that West Ham could look to bring in an out of contract forward.

The likes of Wilfried Bony and Hatem Ben Arfa were mooted.

And now a report report from The Daily Mail has claimed the Hammers were interest in former Newcastle and France attacker Ben Arfa.

Report claims Hammers wanted Ben Arfa

According to The Daily Mail, Fiorentina, Fenerbahce and West Ham were among a clutch of clubs linked with the 32-year-old winger after he left French club Rennes.

But the former PSG and Marseille winger posted on social media that none of the offers he received excited him.

According to the likes of Mark Noble and Declan Rice, West Ham boss Pellegrini has fostered a superb team spirit at the club.

That has been evident by the way the Hammers have bounced back since losing 5-0 to Manchester City on the opening day of the season.

West Ham must protect superb team spirit

Bringing in someone like Ben Arfa, who has something of a bad boy reputation, could threaten that team spirit.

It may be tempting for West Ham to take a gamble on a free agent like Ben Arfa.

But the risk far outweighs the benefits. Especially when you consider the former Hull City flop would struggle to get game time.

If Pellegrini has opted against signing him, then that speaks volumes that he feels he has a good enough squad to reach his aims this season.