"?West Ham have written to the Ghana Football Association in a bid to delay the departure of attacking midfielder Andre Ayew to the Africa Cup of Nations.
Ayew has suffered with injury so far this season, but grabbed his first goal for the Hammers during their 4-1 win over Swansea on Boxing Day. According to "?Ghana Soccernet, West Ham are hoping to hold onto the 27-year-old for as long as possible to help combat their exhaustive fixture list.
Slaven Bilic is hoping to use Ayew for his side's home game against Manchester United at the start of January, but the club are officially mandated to release the player on New Year's Day ahead of the Africa Cup of Nations. The tournament starts in mid January, with Ayew's Ghana set to take on Uganda in their first fixture.
After a poor start to the season West Ham have recovered to sit 11th in the Premier League. The club have won three consecutive games in recent weeks, with the wins lifting them up the table.
Ayew has made 71 appearances for Ghana after making his debut in 2007, scoring 12 goals. He has twice finished as a runner up in the Africa Cup of Nations, in 2010 and 2015, and also came third in 2008. Ghana have won the competition four times, a record equal with Cameroon and bettered only by Egypt.
The former Marseille forward earned a move to West Ham during the summer after an impressive season with Swansea, having scored 12 Premier League goals in 34 appearances.