West Ham boss Sam Allardyce is finding his search for new defenders to be a frustrating exercise. "We're not making as good progress as I would have liked," said Allardyce. "It has been hugely frustrating. We've been trying in the whole of the window to try and bring in a defender, but not been able to clinch a deal yet.
"That is probably because we have been looking for a short-term deal in loans, as in terms of not permanent deals. I think at this stage of the window everybody wants to, if they are going to release a player, let him go on a permanent basis, not on a short-term loan basis.
"I think that will probably change as the window gets closer to closing and hopefully we will be more successful in our plight to get a defender in at that stage."