Hammers new boy Nayef Aguerd has explained the reason behind his close friendship with West Ham star Pablo Fornals.
West Ham have officially announced the arrival of Moroccan centre-back Aguerd on a five-year deal for a fee reported to be around £30m.
Hammers boss David Moyes admitted Aguerd, 26, is a player he has scouted long and hard.
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And the Scot has clearly been impressed by what he has seen, making Aguerd one of West Ham’s most expensive signings behind Sebastien Haller and Felipe Anderson.
On arriving at West Ham, Aguerd admitted he needs to brush up on his knowledge of the names of his new teammates.
But one player he does know is a certain Spanish cockney who knows what it takes to become a firm favourite with the Hammers faithful.
New boy Aguerd explains the reason behind his unlikely friendship with West Ham star Pablo Fornals in an interview on the club’s official site.
Eagle-eyed West Ham fans spotted that Fornals had liked one of Aguerd’s social media posts last week.
Now we know why. Because the Moroccan and Spaniard are close friends.
New boy Nayef Aguerd explains reason behind his close friendship with West Ham star Pablo Fornals
“I don’t know too much the (names) of the players at West Ham but I will do it, I will learn first all the names, it’s very important…” Aguerd told whufc.com.
“I went to Malaga, he used to play there, I went there for a test. I was in Morocco so I went there and he was there in Malaga.
“We kept and stayed in contact and now he is a good friend.”
It is great that Aguerd will have a familiar face to help him settle in at West Ham.
And who better than the much-loved Fornals – a player who knows not only all about West Ham and the club’s fans but also what Moyes expects from his players.
If Aguerd adapts half as well as Fornals both on and off the pitch then West Ham will have a superb signing on their hands.