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West Ham to battle Everton for Prem star in January: He rejected Ronald Koeman in summer
WEST HAM and Everton are reportedly set to go head-to-head for Sunderland defender Lamine Kone in January.
West Ham and Everton to battle it out for Lamine Kone
According to The Mirror, West Ham are keeping tabs on the Ivory Coast international as Slaven Bilic looks to strengthen his error-prone defence.
The Hammers have already shipped 19 goals in their opening 10 Premier League games this season - only promoted Hull and rock bottom Sunderland have conceded more.
Everton were said to have made a £20million move for the 27-year-old towards the end of the summer, but he instead opted to pen a new deal at Sunderland.
Ronald Koeman and Slaven Bilic to battle it out for Lamine Kone in January
And it is added Ronald Koeman's side will renew their interest when the transfer window reopens.
Kone, a £5m signing last January under Sam Allardyce, was key to helping Sunderland avoid relegation last season.
But the Black Cats are reportedly braced for a host of interest in their star centre-half after their disastrous start to the season, which sees them rooted to the bottom of the table with two points.
Former Liverpool and England defender Jamie Carragher slammed Kone's poor run of form over the weekend.
Jamie Carragher slammed Lamine Kone's performance against Arsenal on Saturday
"His attitude on the pitch this season has been nowhere near acceptable," said Carragher after Saturday's 4-1 defeat to Arsenal.
“He was a man-mountain last season — him and [Jermain] Defoe kept them up, Defoe [scoring the goals] at one end and Kone [keeping them out] at the other.
“He is good enough. He showed that last season. But his attitude now is becoming the main problem. As much as he was the solution last season, he’s the problem this season.”