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West Ham midfielder Dimitri Payet open to Marseille return

West Ham United midfielder Dimitri Payet has told RMC he would consider a return to Marseille to be part of their "interesting" new project.

Payet, 29, left Marseille for West Ham in 2015 and scored nine goals as the Hammers finished seventh in the Premier League last season.

The France international then signed a contract extension through to 2021 but has since hinted that he could leave.

With Marseille's new American owner Frank McCourt having revealed ambitious plans, Payet said he would listen to any approach from his former club.

"Marseille have a new project that looks interesting to me," he said. "Of course, everyone is waiting to see what the new owners do.

"Everyone knows of my attachment to the club. I only talk about it in glowing terms, so why not?"

Payet joined Marseille from Lille in 2013, but the arrival of Marcelo Bielsa as coach the following summer helped take his game to another level.

Seven goals and a league-high 16 assists followed in the 2014-15 campaign and Payet said: "That's where it all started.

"It happened at the time I wanted to go further with the national team. I knew that staying at the level I was at, I had no chance.

"I was going to the national team, but I only played at the ends of matches, without being in the role I am today.

"The arrival of Marcelo coincided with what I wanted. I was fortunate to come across him. That's what started all the rest."

Payet added: "He did things to me that no-one else had done. Everything started there. The first day, he said to me: 'You, I'm not going to let you rest'. And I saw that.

"When I dropped off one time, he didn't include me in the squad and sent me off on holiday. He understood what I needed, and he did it without being too tough, always being fair.

"When I left Marseille, I kept that daily routine."