It has been reported that Scottish side Celtic have rejected a £20 million bid from Premier League side West Ham United for star striker Moussa Dembélé.

Not going anywhere

It is well known that the Hammers are in the market for a striker, with the impending departure of Simone Zaza and injuries to Andy Carroll and record-singing Andre Ayew.

20-year-old Dembélé has been excellent since his summer move from Celtic Park, and has been linked with moves some of England's biggest clubs after scoring 17 goals in 30 first-team appearances so far.

The club hinted on whufc.com: "A bid of £20m – a figure close to the club’s all-time transfer record – was submitted for a player from Scotland."

However their bid has reportedly been rejected by the Scottish champions, and manager Brendan Rodgers stated that the Frenchman will not be leaving in January.

“It won't be January for Moussa,” Rodgers said. “You know at Celtic that if you get a really talented player, then the cycle at best is a couple of years."

“If they have that quality," he stated. "Then it's a great platform for them to demonstrate that."

Rodgers concluded: "Then they know there's a better financial situation down south.”

Excellent players

​The rejected bid adds to another list of recent knock backs for the Hammers. It has been reported in the last few days that bids for Sunderland's Jermain Defoe and Brentford's Scott Hogan.

​Manager Slaven Bilic refused to name individuals, but stated his admiration for the two strikers.

"We’re not going to discuss players that are not ours at the moment," Bilic stated. "The chairman is trying really hard to get some players in positions we need."

“All I would say," the coach admitted. "Is that Jermain Defoe is maybe or probably the main reason why Sunderland stayed up."

"In every game even if he doesn’t score," he stated. "He is making chances, he’s an excellent player."

"As for Scott Hogan," Bilic concluded. "He is an excellent player and again he’s scoring goals.”

West Ham United will take on Manchester City at the London Stadium on Friday, January 6 with kick-off at 7:55pm GMT.