Radoslav Kovac has been talking of his desire to sign a permanent deal with West Ham,

"When I spoke with the club's chairman, he told me that they would be willing to have me stay," he told deniksport.cz.

"But the clause is not the most convenient one so I hope we will come to an agreement somehow in the summer."

One reason why Kovac seems eager to sign for West Ham is the departure of Craig Bellamy. Kovac never played with Bellamy but seems to think the squad are happier without him,

"They are glad he is not in the team. They say he is a maniac. He shouted at everyone who did not pass the ball to him in training, it was crazy. His departure has been a positive thing for the players."


Meanwhile Dean Ashton has been talking about his recovery from injury. Ashton has started jogging on a treadmill, after undergoing ankle surgery, and could resume running next month. Ashton will not return to playing until next season,

"The ultimate aim is to get back running and feel completely comfortable doing this so I do everything one step at a time. It is good to have this as part of my programme now and I will continue to work hard to take it further.

"I want to come back when everything is right, not return prematurely and end up getting another injury, because all the hard work will be for nothing. If it means continuing to be patient and let things take as long as they need to, then that's what I will do."