Pellegrini determined to keep hold of Arnautovic

West Ham United manager Manuel Pellegrini has spoken of his desire to keep hold of striker Marko Arnautovic in January.

The Austrian forward has been subject of a £35 million bid from Chinese club Shanghai SIPG.

West Ham have said the former Stoke player is not for sale stating “£35 million would be nowhere near enough for such a key player.”

Pellegrini said that the speculation won’t affect Arnautovic or any other player linked with a move away from the Hammers this January.

“Marko and the other players involved in the rumours have their heads here, they want to continue the way they’re playing.”

The 29-year-old joined West Ham from Stoke City in July 2017 for a reported fee of £25 million. The Austrian has seven goals and two assists so far this term and netted 11 times last season for the London outfit.

His manager acknowledged his contribution to the side.

“We know that we have in Marko a very good player so maybe lots of clubs may want him to play for their team, but he’s a player of West Ham and at the moment we don’t have any news about him.”

The Hammers welcome Arsenal to the London Stadium on Saturday.