West Ham preparing £16m transfer offer for Bournemouth striker Josh King after failing in £13m bid

WEST HAM have stepped up their interest in Bournemouth striker Josh King.

The Hammers have had an offer of around £13million for the frontman rejected by the Cherries.

Now the Irons are putting together an improved deal worth £16m in a bid to land the Norwegian before the end of this transfer window.

West Ham are on the lookout for another forward after selling Sebastien Haller to Ajax for £20m earlier this month.

The Premier League club have turned their attention to King after failing to seal a deal for Sevilla’s Youssef En-Nesyri.

The former Manchester United starlet’s contract at the Cherries runs out this summer - but the Championship club are still looking to cash in on him after rejecting a £20m offer from United last year.

Despite there being less than six months left on his contract, Bournemouth want more than the £13m West Ham have offered.

If they do not get the fee they want, they could be prepared to gamble by keeping hold of the star until the summer in the hope they get promoted back to the Prem and he will sign a new deal to stay with them.

FANCY A PUNT? TODAY’S BEST ODDS BOOSTS FROM THE UK’S LEADING BOOKIES

But King, 29, is believed to want a move back to the top flight now and does not want to be made to see his Vitality contract out.

Burnley are also interested in signing the Norwegian and either club in claret and blue would appeal to the star, who played in Lancashire at Blackburn before joining Bournemouth in 2015.

He has scored 52 goals in 182 appearances for the Cherries.