West Ham United waited all summer for one midfield signing, and now two could arrive in the space of 24 hours following the completion of Mateus Fernandes’ £40 million transfer.
One day after head coach Will Still confirmed Fernandes had asked to leave Southampton, the Championship outfit granted his wish.
Having reportedly seen two earlier bids swatted aside, West Ham United finally secured one of their top targets on a five-year contract.
Graham Potter believes Fernandes brings a ‘different dimension’ to the London Stadium outfit. By virtue of possessing a dash of pace and plenty of intensity, the Portugal Under-21 international could revolutionise an engine room spluttering along with James Ward-Prowse and Guido Rodriguez leaking oil.
Mateus Fernandes, however, is only part of this belated overhaul.
West Ham expect to sign Monaco’s Soungoutou Magassa as well for a further £14 million, rising to £17 million with add-ons and bonuses included.
And, as the Ligue 1 giants step up their preparations for Sunday’s clash with high-flying Strasbourg, all the signs now point towards Magassa’s imminent arrival across the Channel.
West Ham United-bound Soungoutou Magassa missing from Monaco training
Sporting director Thiago Scuro hinted at Magassa’s likely departure last week.
Since then, West Ham have fought off Nottingham Forest for the France Under-21 international’s signature while seemingly surviving a late hi-jack attempt from Eintracht Frankfurt.
And as head coach Adi Hutter presided over his team’s pre-Strasbourg training session on Friday, it is surely no coincidence that there was no sign of Magassa.
France-based reporter Luke Entwistle was present at the training ground. And while Eliesse Ben Seghir could be sighted despite reports of an impending move to Bayer Leverkusen, the highly-rated defensive midfielder was nowhere to be seen.
That may have something to do with the fact that, as Hammers News have learned, Soungoutou Magassa travelled to London this week in order to undergo medical tests with a club still awaiting their first win of the new campaign.
Magassa and Mateus Fernandes could transform Graham Potter’s midfield
If Mateus Fernandes is likely to play a box-to-box number eight role in Graham Potter’s midfield, or perhaps as one of the number tens behind Niclas Fullkrug or Callum Wilson, then the task of holding the fort in front of a feeble backline will befall Magassa.
Hammers News reported last week, as Edson Alvarez joined Fenerbahce on loan, that West Ham identified Magassa as the Mexican’s replacement.
While Magassa’s line-breaking talents almost rival Adam Wharton and co, among the best young midfielders in Europe for playing through-balls from deep, he is more renowned for his impressive defensive output.
Statsbomb point out that Magassa also sits in the 99th percentile in terms of ‘possessions won’. Simply put, he is amongst the most effective midfielders on the continent when it comes to winning the ball back for his side.
Interestingly, Magassa also ranks higher than Guido Rodriguez, James Ward-Prowse, Edson Alvarez, and none other than Moises Caicedo – Graham Potter’s Brighton and Hove Albion lynchpin back in the day – for ‘key passes’ and ‘progressive passes’.
