Understandably, given that he was recently labelled ‘the best player in the Eredivisie’, West Ham United face quite the challenge battling clubs in the Premier League and abroad for a very sought-after signature.
Now, the levels of success tend to vary quite wildly when it comes to players leaving the Dutch top flight for the English first division. For every Luis Suarez and Ruud van Nistelrooy, for instance, there are a few Afonso Alves’ and Matija Kezman’s.
West Ham United have had some experience in this themselves, of course.
Arriving together from Amsterdam in the summer of 2023, Mohammed Kudus dazzled, albeit briefly, but Edson Alvarez struggled with the pace of the Premier League. Tony Cottee summed up West Ham’s midfield issues well before the late-window additions of Mateus Fernandes and Soungoutou Magassa. Alvarez, like so many others at the club in early-August, simply lacked the athleticism to cope against the more dynamic sides in the competition.
A lack of dynamism is not something that could be thrown at Ismael Saibari, however.
Hammers News’ chief football correspondent Graeme Bailey confirms that PSV Eindhoven’s prancing playmaker is on West Ham United’s radar ahead of the January transfer window.
Labelled the standout talent in the Eredivisie by former Feyenoord ace Ali Boussaboun, Saibari has reportedly caught the eye of AC Milan, Marseille and Benfica too. Bailey, meanwhile, tells TBR Football that Aston Villa, Leeds, Fulham, Brighton and Everton are also keeping tabs on the mercurial Moroccan.
So given that West Ham may have to sell before they buy once again – those financial issues forced them to accept that Tottenham bid for Kudus back in July – and considering the sheer amount of competition, this will not be an easy deal to do.
West Ham United’s chances of signing PSV Eindhoven star Ismael Saibari played down
Saibari has a highly impressive ten goals from 16 appearances this season.
The box-crashing number eight has long since established himself as a player for the big moments, too. In 2025/26, he has hit a hat-trick against Feyenoord, one against Ajax, as well as Champions League strikes against Napoli and Bayer Leverkusen.
“Saibari is a player attracting a lot of attention,” Bailey says, indicating that a potential relegation battle could be another obstacle in the challenge to sign a player looking forward to representing Morocco at the 2026 World Cup.
“He is in fine form and most importantly is likely to be available in January. But West Ham are going to come up against issues persuading players, especially in a World Cup year, to join the fight.”
Bailey adds that West Ham are already finding it difficult in pursuit of winter additions, even at this early stage.
Hammers News can confirm that West Ham are likely to miss out on Real Madrid’s Endrick, for example, due partly to his £100,000-a-week wages and a sizeable loan fee. Endrick is edging closer to joining Lyon instead.
“I have already been told about a couple of potential deals that have stalled because of this,” Bailey adds.
Ali Boussaboun thinks PSV could sell Saibari for £45 million
Boussaboun, a former Morocco international himself, feels that Saibari is currently the stand-out talent in a league which gave rise to the likes of Suarez, Van Nistelrooy, Memphis Depay, Lisandro Martinez and Cody Gakpo.
“He’s the best player in the Eredivisie. He’s simply the complete package; insight into the game, technique, and efficiency. For me, it’s a no-brainer that he’s the player to watch in the Dutch league,” Boussaboun told Sportnieuws after that Feyenoord hat-trick.
“He has the power and technique, and he’s a smart player. He’s not a ‘blind horse’ that just runs, but someone who knows exactly what he’s doing. That makes him incredibly attractive to top clubs.”
Boussaboun also believes that, if Saibari can double his existing goal tally, a transfer in the region of £45 million may be on the cards.
“If he scores at least twenty goals in the Eredivisie, plays a decisive role for PSV in Europe, and wins the Africa Cup of Nations with Morocco, he could easily leave for fifty million euros.”
