West Ham United could potentially fetch as much as £70m by selling Mateus Fernandes to Paris Saint-Germain in the summer, according to one transfer insider.
The Irons’ relegation from the Premier League is set to be followed by several high-profile departures from the London Stadium, with Jarrod Bowen and Crysencio Summerville among the names being touted for the exit door.
The Portuguese midfielder is also among those who could plausibly be sold for a sizeable fee, with Manchester United reportedly interested in the 21-year-old, but Michael Carrick’s side could yet face stern competition from the continent.
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West Ham could fetch £70m for Mateus Fernandes
Former Everton chief executive Keith Wyness is expecting Fernandes to fetch a substantial amount for West Ham in the summer, and he hinted that it mightn’t be long before PSG lure him from one capital city to another.
He toldFootball Insider‘s Inside Track podcast: “With an auction, it could get as high as £70m, so that’s where I think the market’s going to be.
“PSG is going to be very attractive for Fernandes, but he may well stay in the Premier League, and it’s who’s going to step up and pay that amount.
“I expect to see that deal [with PSG] being done as we’re speaking right now behind the scenes and announced pretty quickly in the window.”
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West Ham should be able to make a tidy profit on Fernandes
Although West Ham’s retention of faith in Nuno Espirito Santo provides a welcome semblance of stability as they prepare for life in the Championship, it still seems likely that several of their most valuable playing assets will depart over the summer.
Fernandes is one of those, with the Irons boss lauding the youngster’s ‘fantastic season‘ despite the team’s relegation from the Premier League, and that he earned a springtime call-up to a Portugal squad with a stacked midfield speaks volumes for the 21-year-old’s talent.
The east Londoners paid just over £40m to sign him from Southampton last August and with the youngster embellishing his stock even further since then, they should feel confident of turning a significant profit on him if he were to depart this summer.
West Ham already seem to be preparing for the Portuguse gem’s prospective exit, with reports of an ‘agreement in principle‘ for Metz midfielder Alpha Toure, who could be snapped up for as little a £6m.
Fernandes will be missed if (as seem likely) he does move on, but the London Stadium hierarchy should be able to command a hefty fee for him if the lure of PSG proves too difficult to resist.
The post ‘I expect…’ – Insider claims West Ham could strike £70m deal with PSG for ‘fantastic’ gem appeared first on CaughtOffside.