If West Ham can only make one signing this summer then it should be Anderlecht boy wonder Youri Tielemans.
He’s definitely one of the hotter names on the transfer market at the moment. Tielemans has definitely attracted a lot of attention from around Europe. He’s one of the most talented two way midfielders in football right now below the age of 23 and would not only be a good addition to the team but a sound investment as well. West Ham should well be interested.
The club should not sell themselves short in negotiating for Tielemans. By playing in England for a big-market club in the heart of London Tielemans will get the sort of exposure that he can only dream of in other potential landing spots like Monaco or Germany. The Premier League is a vastly more watched league than either France’s Ligue 1 or the Bundesliga. They would do well to play on this fact.
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What Can The Club Offer?
This is modern football after all so we cannot overlook the importance of a brand and marketing. Tielemans has the potential to someday be a superstar. In England he will get the exposure that can allow him to fulfill that potential. London would also allow the lifestyle of his choice, definitely over another English City.
Playing in the Premier League against teams like Chelsea, Manchester United, Manchester City, Liverpool, Arsenal and Tottenham each twice a year will give him the opportunity to showcase his true potential better than anyplace else in the world. Tielemans could theoretically play for West Ham for 2-3 years as a regular starter. This before moving on to a bigger club at a massive mark up for the Irons. As mentioned recently, the club need to take advantage of these opportunities.
It is not unfeasible that West Ham could offer Tieleman’s a salary in the range of 65-95k per week. This plus guaranteed playing time and have that be a better offer than other clubs where he could very possibly waste time sitting on the bench. Currently Everton have a 21 million pound bid on the table for Tielemans.
Can the Hammers compete?
The Hammers are in the same bracket of importance and potential as Everton and should not allow themselves to be beaten on this. If John Stones was worth almost 50 million pounds to City then a player like Tielemans, who will have proven himself in the Premier League, and is a vastly superior player could be worth more than that in a couple years time.
Next: How should the Hammers deal with Andy Carroll?
This is a good decision in every respect for West Ham. This is the way the club should be looking to do its business moving forward. It looks after improving the team in the immediate future and keeps the team chugging along at the financial pace they will need to be in order to eventually bring European football and some day even honors to the London Stadium.