West Ham are closing in on a deal for Valencia youngster Toni Martinez, Slaven Bilic has confirmed.
Martinez, 18, is yet to make a senior appearance for his current club, but is highly rated by Bilic and his coaching staff.
Bilic said: “With Toni Martinez at Valencia, we are quite close. If we finish [the deal], we will have one of the brightest young players from Valencia.”
The Spanish forward was on the cusp of Gary Neville's first team before the English manager was sacked on Wednesday, and could be plying his trade at the Olympic Stadium in time for next season with a reported £2.4m deal on the cards.
The Hammers are currently challenging for a Champions League spot and can look forward to an FA Cup quarter-final replay against Manchester United on 13 April.
This Saturday West Ham host Crystal Palace, with Bilic wary of the threat the fellow Londoners pose despite their current run of 13 games without a win.
Edges Rob Green out of the team, this eccentric former England No1 keeps net in our side.
Shaun Botterill/Getty Images
3/13
RB: Glen Johnson
His stint in the first team may have been short-lived, before moving to Chelsea, but this academy graduate has gone on to make 54 appearances for England.
Mike Hewitt/Getty Images
4/13
CB: Rio Ferdinand
A ball-playing centre, the Hammers fans were always going to love Rio.
Harry Redknapp handed him his first team debut at just 17, and the boy from Peckham never looked back.
He would make 127 appearances for the Hammers before moving to Leeds and then Manchester United.
A former England captain, Ferdinand made 81 appearances for the national team.
Nick Wilson /Allsport
5/13
CB: Bobby Moore
The first name on the team-sheet. Moore famously captained England to World Cup in 1966, and went on to make 108 appearances for his country.
He would make 544 appearances for the Hammers, guiding them to the FA Cup in 1963/64 and the Uefa Cup Winners’ Cup the following year.
More was also runner-up in 1970 Ballon d’Or.
Keystone/Getty Images
6/13
LB: Stuart Pearce
He may have been 37-years-old when he arrived at the Boleyn, but with 78 England caps to his name, the affectionately nicknamed ‘Psycho’ brought a wealth of experience to club.
Phil Cole/ALLSPORT
7/13
DM: Paul Ince
One of two unpopular inclusions in this Hammers midfield. This boyhood West Ham fan made 72 appearances for the club after being spotted as a kid by club legend John Lyall.
But Lyall’s dismissal following the club’s relegation at the end of the 1988/1989 campaign culminated in Ince leaving the Boleyn for Old Trafford after being pictured in Manchester United kit.
Ince would go on to make 53 appearances for England.
Dan Smith/Getty Images
8/13
CM: Trevor Brooking
A knight of realm, Brooking was born and bred in Barking – just like Bobby Moore.
He would make over 520 appearances for the Hammers between 1966 and 1984, and was capped 47 times by England.
Allsport UK/Allsport
9/13
CM: Frank Lampard
The son of a club icon, and the manager’s nephew, Frank Lampard junior was always going to stand out from the crowd at the Boleyn.
Like Ince, Lampard is not remembered fondly following his move to Chelsea, but he was an obvious choice for our XI.
Lampard scored 24 goals in 148 games for the Hammers between 1995 and 2001, and went on to win 106 caps for England.
Stu Forster/Allsport
10/13
AMR: Joe Cole
This boywonder may not have reached his full potential, but he’s the archetypal West Ham player.
Cole made 157 appearances for the Hammers over two spells, and won 56 caps for his country.
Laurence Griffiths/Getty Images
11/13
AML: Martin Peters
He may have left the club for rivals Tottenham, but Peters will forever be associated with the club having made over 300 appearances for the Hammers between 1959-1970.
He made a total of 67 appearances for his country, scoring 20 goals, one of which coming in the 1966 World Cup final.
Central Press/Hulton Archive/Getty Images
12/13
ST: Geoff Hurst
He’s the only player to score a hat-trick in a World Cup final. This Boleyn Ground legend was always going to lead our line.
Hurst would score a formidable 248 goals in 499 games for the Hammers, and 24 in 49 for his country.
“It’s still a very dangerous game for us," he told reporters on Thursday. "They have a very solid team, have pace up front, so it will be difficult for us, of course.”
ArticleWest Ham close to signing Valencia youngster Martinez, confirms BilicWest Ham United FCSlaven BilicPremier LeagueValencia CfWest Ham transfer news: Toni Martinez Valencia deal quite close confirms Slaven BilicWest Ham’s Dimitri Payet outperforming Arsenal's best players, says Paolo Di CanioImagePublishedMedium width1Thursday, March 31, 2016 - 16:35Interested: Slaven Bilic hopes to sign Valencia's teenage strikerOnEnable video endboarddefault
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