Fernandes will love him: West Ham "exploring" deal for "superb" £25m star
da prosport bet： After a pretty miserable couple of weeks in which West Ham United lost games against Sunderland, Chelsea and Wolverhampton Wanderers, there is finally reason to be optimistic about this season.
da wazamba： Yes, after weeks of stories about offers being made and rejected, Graham Potter has finally been handed his new midfield star in Mateus Fernandes.
The former Southampton ace cost the club in excess of £40m, but considering how well he played in his first Premier League season last year, that’s not bad value at all.
Moreover, if reports are to be believed, the Hammers are now keen to add another signing to the squad, someone Fernandes would love to play with.
West Ham target perfect teammate for Fernandes
While things aren’t looking great on the pitch at the moment, West Ham’s summer is starting to look like a decent one, at least from an incomings perspective.
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For example, in addition to Fernandes, the club have signed the likes of Kyle Walker-Peters, El Hadji Malick Diouf, and Soungoutou Magassa, who is should be announced before the team play Nottingham Forest tomorrow afternoon.
Moreover, the East Londoners appear keen to make further additions to the squad and are eyeing a move for someone who’d be a brilliant teammate for Fernandes.
At least that is according to a recent report from Sky Sports Germany’s Florian Plettenberg, who has claimed West Ham are interested in Quinten Timber.
The German journalist has revealed that the Hammers are now “exploring” a deal to sign the Netherlands international, who Feyenoord value at £25m, per reports from earlier this summer.
It could be a complicated transfer to get over the line, but given his quality, Timber would be more than worth it, especially as he’d be a great teammate for Fernandes.
Why Timber would be a great teammate for Fernandes
So, the first, and arguably one of the most important reasons Fernandes will love playing with Timber is his surprisingly decent level of output.
We say surprisingly decent for the simple fact that the Dutchman is primarily a central midfielder, but as his numbers from last season show, he is more than capable of producing goals and assists.
For example, in his 26 appearances last season, totalling 2054 minutes, the “extraordinary” midfielder, as dubbed by Mikel Arteta, scored six goals and provided one assist, which comes out to an average of a goal involvement every 3.71 games, or every 293.42 minutes.
Timber’s 24/25
Appearances
26
Minutes
2054′
Goals
6
Assists
1
Goal Involvements per Match
0.26
Minutes per Goal Involvement
293.42′
All Stats via Transfermarkt
While those aren’t ground-breaking numbers, it will be reassuring for the Hammers’ new Portuguese manager to know that the responsibility of producing goal involvements won’t fall solely on his shoulders.
The next reason the Dutchman would be such a brilliant teammate for the Irons’ new ace is his experience and leadership.
Despite still being just 24 years old, the former Ajax prospect has made 105 appearances for Feyenoord and 33 for Utrecht, and has won five senior caps for the Netherlands.
Moreover, he’s also the captain of De Stadionclub, so, in addition to knowing he can contribute with goals and assists, the former Saints gem will be able to rely on the “superb” midfielder, as dubbed by talent scout Jacek Kulig, for guidance and leadership.
Ultimately, Timber would be an excellent signing on his own, but by playing him alongside Fernandes, West Ham could maximise the potential of both.