According to the Israeli newspaper, Haaretz, Hapoel Tel Aviv's defender John Pantsil has agreed terms with an English Premier League side and is set to sign a five-year contract with the London club.

The Ghanaian international will reportedly earn 11,000 pounds sterling a week with West Ham, which will pay Hapoel 750,000 euros for the defender. Hapoel has said it is not prepared to loan out the player.

Pantsil will join the Hammers squad on their preseason tour of Sweden and will sign with the club next week when its general manager, Paul Aldridge, returns from vacation.

West Ham was left without a right-back after Lionel Scaloni's loan deal from Deportivo La Coruna expired, and West Ham manager Alan Pardew then missed out on signing England full-back Luke Young from Charlton.

Pantsil, who played in all of Ghana's three World Cup matches in Germany this summer, was recommended to Pardew by West Ham's Israel international midfielder Yossi Benayoun. Pantsil courted controversy at the World Cup by brandishing an Israeli flag as he celebrated Ghana's goals in their 2-0 win over the Czech Republic.

The Ghanaian Football Association issued an apology after the incident, insisting neither they nor Pantsil was taking sides in the Middle East conflict