West Ham United boss Slaven Bilic has insisted that Simone Zaza not starting games has nothing to do with a clause in his contract.

The striker, who was roped in by West Ham on a season-long loan deal from Juventus in the summer, has a purchase option in the clause which will be activated if he starts a previously agreed number of games for the Hammers.




However, Zaza has thus far failed to make his mark in England and is yet to score for the east London outfit.

The Italian international has so far made 10 appearances in all competitions for West Ham, with six of those being starts.
 


And Bilic explained that Zaza is not starting games not due to the obligatory purchase clause, but only because of his performances in training and in games.

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“I believe in him”, the Croatian said in his pre-Manchester United press conference on Friday.

“He’s our player and it’s not only him but we need him to, with the help of team-mates, to start producing and doing what we got him for.

“If he starts or doesn’t start games, it has nothing to do with the clause but only on his training performances and performances in games.”

Zaza, who has been linked with making a move back to Italy, with Napoli interested, last started for West Ham in their 1-0 win over Sunderland in the Premier League in late October.