Transfer news: West Ham keen on Arsenal captain Thomas Vermaelen, Sam Allardyce admits

The Arsenal captain is wanted by West Ham, but Allardyce doubts his chances

Arsenal captain Thomas Vermaelen (GETTY IMAGES)

West Ham United manager Sam Allardyce admits that the Premier League strugglers remain keen on Arsenal captain Thomas Vermaelen, but doubts their chances of concluding a deal.

Vermaelen has been unable to dislodge either Per Mertesacker or Laurent Koscielny from Arsene Wenger's starting XI, and has only made 11 appearances in all competitions this season.

This initially led to speculation that the Belgian international could be set to leave the Emirates but Allardyce is sceptical over his chances of luring Vermaelen to East London.

"I think under the circumstances at Arsenal, in the position that they’re in, in the Champions League and cup matches, they’ve had to use him as soon as any of the two defenders have been injured," he said.

"So I don’t think there’s any chance we’ll get somebody of his quality. It would be nice if we could.

"I’ve had targets and I haven’t got one yet apart from Roger Johnson, so I’ll keep going and hope we get some."