France midfielder Payet vows to remain at West Ham
(Reuters) - West Ham United's France attacking midfielder Dimitri Payet has made it clear that his immediate future remains with the Premier League side despite speculation that he could soon leave.
The east London club's co-chairman David Gold has pinned a 50 million pounds ($66.39 million) price tag on the exciting Frenchman, who has been linked by British media with a possible move to Chelsea, Manchester City and Paris St Germain.
"I've heard about all the interest and I'm flattered but I love West Ham," Payet told the Sun.
"We had a fantastic season and I can't wait to play in the Olympic Stadium. I'm 100 percent staying at West Ham, I love the club. I can tell the Hammers fans that."
Payet was joint second-top scorer at Euro 2016 with three goals and was named in the team of the tournament as France reached the final where they lost to Portugal in extra time.
The 29-year-old, who joined West Ham from Olympique Marseille in June last year, had an impressive debut season in England by scoring 12 goals in all competitions.
West Ham, who secured a Europa League qualifying spot for the second straight year after finishing seventh in the Premier League, open their 2016-17 domestic league campaign against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on Aug. 15.
($1 = 0.7531 pounds)
(Reporting by Ian Rodricks in Bengaluru; Editing by Ken Ferris)