Former Birmingham City co-owner David Gold is ready to make an offer for West Ham United.

The Daily Express says is ready to show his hand in the chase to buy stricken West Ham, with an £80million bid for the club.

Gold, a multi-millionaire and former Birmingham co-owner, has long been expected to make a move for the struggling Hammers and is ready to make an offer which includes taking on some of their £100m debt.

He was chairman at St Andrews until being bought out last month, but he has said he wants to get back into football soon and wants to buy into the club where he was once a youth team player. He has had several offers from clubs since leaving Birmingham, but has rejected them all - the latest being a deal to buy into Crystal Palace.

Instead it is his beloved West Ham that Gold is really interested in and informal talks have already begun with representatives of CB Holdings, the company who run West Ham on behalf of troubled Icelandic bank Straumur.