West Ham secures Ayew signing for club-record £20.5M
To see a list of completed deals in the summer window thus far, visit theScore's Premier League transfer tracker.
West Ham's search for a top-tier striker finally reached an end Monday.
After searching the continent for a proven goal-scorer, the Hammers completed the signing of the Ghana international from Swansea City for a club-record £20.5-million fee.
West Ham's co-chairman, David Gold, confirmed the financial details of the deal on Twitter.
"I am very proud and happy to be at this magnificent club. I am happy to be playing for these fans and I hope to make the people very happy here," Ayew said. "The club have a lot of ambition and have a great manager. They want to become a bigger club every year and with the new stadium and a new training ground, you can feel they are moving onto another level and I want to be part of this project."
.@AyewAndre has a message for all you Hammers... ⚒https://t.co/jWkR6LTB2y
— West Ham United FC (@whufc_official) August 8, 2016
(Courtesy: West Ham United)
The total surpasses West Ham's previous £15-million benchmark for striker Andy Carroll.
The Irons had openly pursued a forward on the transfer market for the past two months, after finishing the 2015-16 Premier League campaign without a single scorer in double digits.
Lyon's Alexandre Lacazette and AC Milan's Carlos Bacca emerged as early targets for Gold and club partner David Sullivan, but negotiations hit dead ends. Bacca, in particular, left West Ham in waiting for several weeks.
In the end, West Ham secured the services of a striker who scored 12 league goals in 34 appearances for Swansea last season.
Ayew arrived only a few hours after West Ham signed full-back Arthur Masuaku from Olympiacos. They will both be available for the Premier League opener against Chelsea on Monday.
The 26-year-old Ayew will also reunite with former Marseille teammate Dimitri Payet - a connection many West Ham fans hope to see at the new Olympic Stadium.