West Ham’s Felipe Anderson linked with Real Madrid

Nothing says “the international break is here” quite like some transfer rumors. Sky Sports is terrific at generating these such stories with club action at a standstill, and West Ham’s Felipe Anderson is in the middle of one.

Sky Sports are reporting that West Ham’s Felipe Anderson is Real Madrid’s new target in the summer transfer window should Zidane’s side fail to land Eden Hazard from Chelsea. Apparently, Madrid have had a £60m bid rejected by Chelsea, spurring the rumor forward.

My initial thought on this is that it is completely bogus. Just a made up rumor that has been constructed to fill the international void, and I’m sticking to that. The story is there, as West Ham broke their transfer record to sign Anderson and he’s gone on to be an elite attacker in the Premier League.

Compound this with his international call up to Brazil for this international break and the story nearly writes itself.

But, why would Real Madrid think Hazard would only cost £60m? That seems absurdly low for a player of his quality in today’s market. Also, why would an initial bid months before the summer window opens push Madrid to abandon their transfer plans and fall back to an alternative option?

It just doesn’t make sense. This coming after Anderson opened up about his time at West Ham, links to Paulo Di Canio, and where he sees himself in the future make the story even weaker:

"“I just want to do my best for the club, win as many titles as possible. I am happy here, I am not looking for something else.”"

The fee associated with Anderon’s move to Real Madrid is rumored to be £65m, nearly doubling the fee West Ham paid for him from Lazio last summer.

Good business aside (which is what this would be) there is no reason for West Ham to accept this transfer amount for Anderson. He is the lynchpin to the team’s offense, was Manuel Pellegrini’s first choice attacking player upon signing with West Ham, and he has guaranteed starting minutes in the worlds best football league. Why leave?

Sure, the pull of Zidane’s Real Madrid is strong but there are too many holes in this deal to make it seem plausible. Madrid were supposedly rejected on a bid for Hazard that is less than they would pay for Anderson, yet this has pushed them to move on from their top choice left winger already? Come on, Sky Sports, you’re better than that!