West Ham striker Demba Ba dismisses greed claims by revealing he rejected lucrative Russian offer

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West Ham‘s January signing Demba Ba has hit back at claims by the general manager of former club Hoffenheim that his exit from German football was motivated by money.

The 25-year-old had pushed through a move away from the Bundesliga side by refusing to link up with the club during their winter training, opting instead to go to England to expediate a transfer to a Premier League side.

The Senegal international had looked set to join Stoke City before a medical revealed an underlying problem that pulled the rug on the deal at the last minute before joining West Ham later in the window.

And the powerful forward has reacted angrily to Ernst Tanner’s insinuations that he sought to leave Hoffenheim purely for financial reasons, revealing that he turned down a lucrative offer from Russian side Rubin Kazan.

“Mr Tanner has ruined my image in the Bundesliga,” Ba told Sport Bild.

“I only heard these words: ‘Demba is only after money’. The truth is that I could have earned much more money elsewhere.

“I was presented with an offer from Rubin Kazan. They wanted to pay a €15 million [£12.73m] fee. I could have earned much more there than in West Ham.

“It’s not all about money for me.”

The striker, who had expressed his desire to move to English football throughout January, has made an impressive start to life at Upton Park, netting three in three for his new club.