Toure not a priority for West Ham – Pellegrini

Yaya Toure is not a priority signing for Premier League club West Ham, Manuel Pellegrini has claimed.

Toure was linked with a move to several Premier League clubs in the close-season, but instead opted for a return to Greek giants Olympiacos.

However, the midfielder’s second spell in Athens was cut short on Tuesday, with Olympiacos agreeing to terminate his contract after Toure had made just five appearances for the club.

But although Pellegrini acknowledged he spoke to the former Manchester City star – who the Chilean managed during his time at the Etihad Stadium – at the start of the campaign, he does not believe the Hammers will be prioritising the signing of the free agent, despite Toure’s quality.

“I spoke with Yaya at the beginning of the season,” Pellegrini said when asked about the possibility of signing the ex-Barcelona man.

“Yaya is a great player, a top player that plays in every part of the role.

“I don’t know what happened with him in Greece.

“But in this moment we are just thinking about the next game that we are going to play and I don’t want to talk until the end of December about the window and which players that we need.

“At this moment, I cannot answer your question. It’s not a priority as in that position we already have players.”

Double Toure Trouble! #onthisday #mancity pic.twitter.com/RSvRhNOhlM

— Manchester City (@ManCity) 19 November 2018

Should Toure join, he could come in alongside Samir Nasri, another player who featured under Pellegrini at City.

“Nasri is still working with us the whole month,” Pellegrini added.

“The same as I said with Yaya, we are just thinking about the games rather than changes that we are going to do in January.

“Of course he is working with us, he is doing well and we will decide in the correct moment.”