Without a shadow of a doubt, West Ham’s key player is Dimitri Payet. The Frenchman was at the heart of all that was good about the Hammers last season as they put themselves in the mix for a top four finish before eventually sliding away, with his superb technique helping him to nine goals in league action while also getting the most out of his team-mates.

Even this term in and under-performing Irons side, and on the back of a long summer at EURO 2016 with France, the playmaker has looked good. With the claret and blue outfit hovering around the relegation zone, it’s hard to imagine the 29-year-old staying at the London Stadium long-term unless things change dramatically, which has already got some supporters worried.

But, where could he go? Well, West Ham legend Tony Cottee has told Sport360 that he sees Manchester United and Manchester City as the only viable options within England for Payet, with moves to any of the club’s London rivals likely to cause anger:

“First and foremost, I know Dimitri’s happy at the club. His family’s settled in London, he’s got a huge contract at West Ham,

“We all know he’s had a wonderful EUROs and fantastic first season at the club. The problem West Ham’s got is that he’s 29 at the moment. The clock’s ticking. Once you get to 30, it goes really fast.

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“As a footballer, forget the money and everything else, you want to win trophies. You want to play in the Champions League, there’s a World Cup coming up in Russia in two years’ time so he wants to be at a club where he’ll do well and competing to win trophies.

“I was hoping that would happen (winning trophies) at West Ham but if they’re having a transitional season, then it will be hard to keep hold of him. He’s a special player and he’ll want to play Champions League football. I’m sure the fans won’t begrudge him that.

“They won’t want him to go to Chelsea, Arsenal or Tottenham – any of the London rivals. If he went to Manchester United or Manchester City, I think everyone would say thank you for the memories. I hope he stays but we’ll have to wait and see.”