West Ham boss Slaven Bilic has lauded the club-record signing Andre Ayew as a "game changer."

The 26-year-old Ghana international forward joined the Hammers from Swansea on Tuesday in a deal believed to be worth around £20million.

The move sees Ayew reunited with his former Marseille team-mate Dimitri Payet, who is now established as a firm fan favourite at West Ham after enjoying an impressive debut season.

"He adds more quality," the West Ham boss said. "We had a really good season. Some people say it was unbelievable, most say it was a really, really good one.

"So we didn't have the need to start from the bottom and change all the players although in football you are always trying to improve your team - and there are no yesterdays in football.

"He came to England and did a really good job. He scored 12 goals and played in different positions. He can be a game changer."

Bilic revealed he had spoken to Payet on a number of occasions when it came to his latest recruit.

"He was our target for a long time," said Bilic.

"But I did speak to Dimitri, two weeks ago and before in October or November and in March."