WEST Ham are lining up a January bid for Sunderland defender Lamine Kone.
The Black Cats defender was close to joining Everton in the summer with a £18million bid rejected by the North East club as new boss David Moyes arrived at the Stadium of Light.
The Hammers are ready to test the Premier League strugglers resolve by triggering the Ivory Coast stoppers £18m release clause next month.
Kone, 29 joined Sunderland under former boss Sam Allardyce from Lorient for £6m and helped steer the Mackems away from relegation last season.
Following the move to Merseyside breaking down, Kone signed a new long term deal in September with the release clause inserted to avoid any arguments about a future valuation.
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Kone has made 13 appearance for Sunderland this season and Moyes will be desperate to hold on to the stopper following a morale sapping defeat at fellow strugglers Swansea on Saturday.
West Ham, just a point above the drop zone after a hard fought draw at Liverpool on Sunday have conceded 31 league goals already this season and Bilic knows it's an issue he must address immediately.
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