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Arsenal poised to beat West Ham to signature of Ciprian Marica
ARSENAL appear to be in pole position to land Romania striker Ciprian Marica.
The 27-year-old is a free agent after leaving Schalke and has been linked to numerous clubs including Shakhtar Dontesk, Lazio and Inter Milan.
West Ham are also in the market for a striker and missed out on re-signing Carlton Cole this week after he failed to prove his fitness.
Sam Allardyce has been left with limited options up front until January with just three recognised strikers.
He's close to joining Arsenal, but we have to wait for the next week
"Marica is a really great striker who has already got experience in western European football and so it's natural that big clubs are eyeing his career," his agent Ioan Becali recently told Romanian publication Prosport.ro
And it seems a move to Arsenal is in the pipeline, as Becali added: "He's close to joining Arsenal, but we have to wait for the next week."
Marcica knows how to find the back of the net, having scored 22 times in 63 international appearances.