West Ham have confirmed their interest in signing Liverpool striker Andy Carroll on a season-long loan deal.
Serie A side AC Milan are thought to be interested in signing Carroll, who it is believed could be allowed to leave Anfield on loan, with Pier Silvio Berlusconi, president of Mediaset - the holding company that owns AC Milan - and the son of club owner Silvio Berlusconi, last week urging his father to make a move for the England international.
Newspaper reports on Wednesday morning suggested West Ham were considering making an ambitious bid for the 23-year-old, and a Hammers spokesman has confirmed to ESPN that there is interest from Upton Park.
The Hammers, though, are yet to lodge an offer, with a source quoted as saying: "West Ham are rating their chances of getting Carroll on loan as low as 10%, but you never know."
Carroll signed for Liverpool from Newcastle for £35 million in January 2011 but despite an improvement in form at the end of last season has largely struggled on Merseyside.
The forward is good friends with West Ham midfielder Kevin Nolan, and Hammers boss Sam Allardyce is said to believe their relationship could help him to pull off a deal.
Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers this week admitted he could be open to a loan deal.
"It’s something I would have to look at, I have to be honest," said the former Swansea manager.
"Is it going to be beneficial for the club, that’s the most important thing? Sometimes a player going out on loan - in general, not just Andy - can benefit the club in the long term.
"It gets them game experience, and they come back a better player, a more confident one. Certainly more so than if they’ve been sitting on the bench for the majority of the season."