Promotion chasing West Ham have confirmed they tried to sign Carlos Tevez and Fernando Torres on loan in the January transfer window.

Co-chairman David Gold confirmed that the club had hoped to take Chelsea star Torres for two months.
He also revealed that the London club asked three times whether they could bring Tevez back to Upton Park on a temporary basis.

Tevez is something of a cult hero at the club after playing a vital role in staving off relegation in 2007. He was until recently however in footballing limbo back in Argentina following his much publicised bust-up with City boss Roberto Mancini last September.

Torres meanwhile has struggled to justify his £50million price tag since moving from Liverpool last January and has found himself in and out of the Chelsea side. After four goals in 18 appearances last term many tipped him to get back to his best this campaign and was well backed in the top scorer betting , but has scored just four times in 21 appearances to date.

"We weren't scoring goals and we felt that Torres was a bit out of favour at the time and we thought maybe Chelsea would let Torres go for a month or two to let him get his sharpness back. It was more of an enquiry than a bid,” said Gold.

"They were playing him as a bit-part. We desperately needed a striker and we also believed he would be lethal in this division so it could have been a good thing for both clubs."

Despite missing out on the duo West Ham did bring in striking reinforcements in the form of Bristol City striker Nicky Maynard and Barnsley forward Ricardo Vaz Te. Punters who bet on the Championship  predicted that West Ham would bounce straight back to the Premier League and that now looks likely given they are a point clear at top of the table with a game in hand.