West Ham have told Marko Arnautovic they will allow him to leave in the summer but the club remain determined not to sell in January — even if the striker refuses to play.
Arnautovic was left out of the 2-0 defeat at Bournemouth on Saturday by Manuel Pellegrini but West Ham are adamant the wantaway Austrian will not force through a move to China.
West Ham do not want to lose Arnautovic now because the January window is not a good time to replace him.
The Hammers have told the 29-year-old they will sanction a move for him at the end of the season in a bid to persuade him to stay until then.
Arnautovic, though, has made it clear he wants a move to China, where he could earn £300,000 a week, and West Ham fear the transfer saga could drag on.
His brother and agent Danijel has also made it clear Arnautovic wants to leave West Ham and the Chinese transfer window does not close until the end of February.
West Ham are keen to avoid a similar situation to two years ago when Dimitri Payet refused to play to force through a move away. Payet eventually got his wish and joined Marseille at the end of January.
But West Ham are reluctant to lose Arnautovic this month and would demand up to £50million for him before they would even consider letting him leave.
A Chinese Super League club, thought to be Shanghai SIPG, have yet to improve their initial £35m bid and West Ham are adamant he will not be sold at that price. It has been reported that offer from the Chinese champions has now been withdrawn.
Pellegrini will now have to reintegrate Arnautovic into his squad ahead of the FA Cup fourth-round tie away at AFC Wimbledon on Saturday.
Pellegrini said Arnautovic was left out at Bournemouth because his head is on “another issue”. He said: “A manager must choose the players that work better during the week. Marko has his head on another issue so it wasn’t a good idea for him to play.”
Pellegrini said last week that Arnautovic could leave if it was “a good deal for both parties”.
But West Ham would have little time to find a replacement if he was sold now. The Hammers have identified Bournemouth’s Callum Wilson and Celta Vigo’s Maxi Gomez as possible replacements, but their top targets will not be available until the summer.
