West Ham close to £14m capture of Wilfried Bony

West Ham are on the brink of sealing a £14million deal for Ivory Coast powerhouse Wilfried Bony.The Hammers are set to announce the capture of the Ivory Coast striker from Vitesse Arnhem this week after agreeing the move with the cash-strapped Dutch club.Bony, 24, has been described as the new Didier Drogba because of his physical style and scoring prowess.He has scored 26 goals for Vitesse this season – making him top scorer in the Eredivisie – and is expected to be named Holland’s Player of the Year.

Bony, a £4m capture from Sparta Prague just over two years ago, is set to move to Upton Park in the summer. Bony packs over 13stone of muscle in his 5ft 9ins frame and has an explosive style.He has scored 11 goals in his last seven games for club and country and was targeted by Newcastle in January.He was a member of the Ivory Coast squad who reached the quarter-finals of the African Nations Cup in South Africa in February.Bony’s capture is a major coup for the Hammers, who have been given the go-ahead to move the Olympic Stadium at Stratford in 2016.

His arrival means that the club are unlikely to take up a £15m option to sign Andy Carroll.

The Hammers paid Liverpool £2m to take the England striker on loan for the season, but he has scored just three times after being hit by injury.