Clock Ticking for Zaza...

Slaven Bilic's prematch press conference was a pretty sombre affair this week as he tried to find some positives amongst the chaos that is West Ham right now. Speaking about his striking options, he likened Simone Zaza to Denis Bergkamp! However, having witnessed Zaza's performances to date, including how he has struggled to hold onto the ball in possession, most Hammers fans will struggle with this particular analogy!

Signed on a £4million season long loan from Juventus, Zaza has failed to score so far and Bilic has protested that he needs more time. However, the deal includes a mandatory £20 million buy-out clause that will apply after a specified number of games. The big question is therefore how many games?

Some rumours suggest that this is a mere 14 appearances - in which case Christmas is likely to see the Italian's 'trial' come to a premature end unless he can start producing the goods. His general contribution to our attack is quite modest such that he needs to justify his selection with goals. So far, he has fluffed his lines and with Big Andy likely to be back for the Crystal Palace clash on October 16th. Moreover, Slaven Bilic indicated that Diafra Sakho will be available soon after.

It looks like today is a make it or break it opportunity for Zaza.