Samir Nasri is undergoing a medical at West Ham, prior to signing a short-term contract with the Premier League club.

The former France midfielder is currently serving an 18-month ban, following a violation of the World Anti-Doping Code and Uefa’s doping regulations after intravenously receiving 500 millilitres of sterile water containing nutrients while on holiday in Los Angeles in December 2016.

The ban ends at the end of December, after which the former Marseille, Arsenal and Manchester City player is free to resume his career.

Nasri has been free to train at a club from the beginning of November, however, and West Ham manager Manuel Pellegrini, under whom Nasri played some of the best football of his career at City, is moving quickly to sign the 31-year-old on a six-month contract, with an option for a longer deal, in the face of interest from other clubs, including Everton and several in the US.

Dream team? Nasri's record under Pellegrini Appearances 91 Goals 16 Assists 22 Premier League title and two League Cups

Nasri’s £80,000-per-week salary demands ruled out some suitors, but Pellegrini, who has lost Ukraine midfielder Andriy Yarmolenko for the rest of the season with an Achilles injury, is keen to link up once again with the talented but temperamental French playmaker.

Nasri was an almost ever-present in Pellegrini’s Premier League-winning team of 2014 and scored one of the goals in the 2-0 win over West Ham which ensured the title.

Nasri’s contract with Turkish club Antalyaspor was mutually terminated last January, following his doping ban.

West Ham striker Andy Carroll, meanwhile, could be on the substitutes’ bench for the club’s next match, at home to Manchester City.

Carroll, who had an ankle operation in the summer, is back to full training and is scheduled to play in a practice match on Thursday, after which Pellegrini will make a decision on whether the former Newcastle and Liverpool man is ready to be included in his squad for the City match.

Former Arsenal midfielder Jack Wilshere, who has been out for more than two months with an ankle problem, is also due to resume full training next week.

However, Pellegrini is likely to be without full-back Ryan Fredericks for the City match after the former Fulham star suffered an ankle ligament injury in the 1-1 draw at Huddersfield on Saturday.

West Ham came back after conceding an early goal, with Felipe Anderson’s second-half strike making it three goals in two games for the Brazilian.

Pellegrini said: “At the end of the season, this team will be in a better position that it is at the moment and we will always think with a winning mentality to get as high in the table as we can.

“I prefer teams that start the game thinking to win it and not just to have a good result, but I think that we are improving a lot”.