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West Ham embarked on a massive recruitment drive during the summer transfer window as Manuel Pellegrini spent in excess of £100m on new recruits.

Unfortunately, his expenditure is yet to pay off as the Hammers have suffered five defeats in their opening eight Premier League matches and it has become clear that further work needs to be done on the squad in January.

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While an attacking trio of Marko Arnautovic, Andriy Yarmolenko and Felipe Anderson provides optimism, the Hammers are still shaky at the back and the left side of the defence has been a cause for concern with neither Arthur Masuaku or Aaron Cresswell excelling.

Reports now state that West Ham are considering a move for Everton veteran Leighton Baines to bolster their defensive ranks and a move could prove to be a masterstroke, potentially providing the same sort of boost that Pablo Zabaleta has on the opposite side.

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