Stuart Pearce confirms West Ham transfer stance as Hammers warned they must sign players to keep moving forward or best players like Declan Rice will leave

Stuart Pearce insists West Ham will not buy players for the sake of it in January, as the assistant coach spoke to talkSPORT about the club's transfer plans.

The Hammers are flying high in the Premier League, but have struggled for form of late.

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The east London have fallen from fourth place to fifth after run of just one win in their last six league games.

This has coincided with injury blows to defenders Kurt Zouma and Angelo Ogbonna, while Michail Antonio missed Wednesday night’s Carabao Cup quarter-final defeat to Tottenham with coronavirus.

David Moyes could do with reinforcements for his squad as they fight for the top four in the Premier League and also have the Europa League knockout stages to think about in 2022.

West Ham assistant Pearce told the talkSPORT Breakfast: “We certainly are doing the work in trying to get the people in. They’ve got to be the right people, that’s for sure.

“We can buff out the squad and bring people in, but getting the right people is the most important thing. 

“As for David, he wants to make sure the right people come through the door with the right work ethic, that sort of thing.

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“If the right ones are available at the right price, then we will certainly be in the mix for it. If they’re not then we will sit tight and see what we will do.

“That’s the bottom line and that’s been the proviso in the last few windows. Make sure the right people coming in.”

However, West Ham have been warned they risk 'going backwards' and even losing their best players if they don't maintain their top-four push.

Wales legend Dean Saunders says the club need to go out and get players to keep their stars happy, and he's convinced they will be fighting for trophies if they do.

Antonio was a big miss for the Hammers in their 2-1 defeat to Tottenham and that was a big area of concern for Saunders.

He told The Sports Bar: “I don’t think West Ham are the same team without Antonio. He’s a massive player for them. He does all the chasing down and is a nuisance on the break.

“He runs down the sides, strong as an ox, and gets goals.

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“The owners have been chucking money at it for a while now. When Pellegrini was the manager they gave him a load of money and that didn’t work.

“David Moyes, they get him back and he’s got a team together now. If I was one of the owners now, I’d be saying ‘what do you need, David?’

“West Ham are on the brink of the next step. This is the best team they’ve had for years and years.

“They’ve got really good players. The thing is now, if they don’t show the players they are going to take the next step your best players will leave.

“If they can see you are trying to win something and going to go forward, the likes of Declan Rice will be saying ‘I’m happy here’.

“If you’re not buying players and going forward, you are going backwards.”