Advanced deal: West Ham to meet wage demands of PL icon after £100,000-a-wk offer tabled - reports

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Published on:

14 May 2017, 2:35 am

By Harry Sykes

West Ham will meet the £100,000-a-week wage demands of Pablo Zabaleta as they close in on signing him this summer, according to reports.

Hammers insider Ex-WHU Employee has claimed on Twitter that the club are in talks to snap up the Argentina right-back, 32, when his Manchester City contract expires in the coming weeks and will meet his salary expectations.

The Sun have reported that West Ham have tabled a two-year contract offer worth £10.4million in total over two years to the defensive talisman.

Speculation is intensifying that the Premier League club will seal a deal for Zabaleta and make him one of their premier summer signings.

Ex-WHU Employee is a reliable source of Hammers information and has broken a number of stories on his personal Twitter account, including regular dispatches on their pursuit of the City icon.

Zabaleta will go down in history as one of the greatest City signings of the modern era after joining from Espanyol in 2008 for £7.4million.

He has been an integral figure in the Manchester club's transformation into one of Europe's elite clubs, winning two Premier League titles, the FA Cup and two League Cups.

Zabaleta has had to share right-back duties with fellow veteran Bacary Sagna this season but has still made 30 appearances in all competitions spread across 1,989 minutes of action.

In total, he has played 331 matches for City, scoring 11 goals and providing 28 assists, and been a mainstay during the golden Abu Dhabi-owned era.

Football Insider verdict:

What a coup for West Ham the signing of Zabaleta would be. He might not be the rampaging force of old who was one of the leading right-backs in the world at his peak. But Zabaleta is a warrior, leader and proven Premier League performer who is still getting regular games under Pep Guardiola. The Argentina international can also be a hugely positive influence on youngster Sam Byram, who has showed signs in recent weeks that he has what it takes to be a top-flight player.

In other West Ham transfer news, Karren Brady has showered Tottenham with praise for this deal.

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Manchester City

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Pablo Zabaleta