The question on the lips of every West Ham United fan this week is something along the lines of; ‘Who on earth is Gustavo Sa?’
Followed closely by; ‘is Gustavo Sa actually signing for West Ham United?’
Considering that the Portuguese press appear to be presenting this one as a near-done deal, they are very fair questions indeed. Record reported over the weekend that Gustavo Sa was set to become Nils Koppen’s first signing at the London Stadium, to the tune of £17 million.
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Undeterred by the lack of attention these claims have received among those in the know on UK soil, Record doubled down on Tuesday night. The Portugal Under-21 international, they say, has a five-year contract waiting on the table for him at West Ham United.
As far as club insider ExWhuEmployee knows, however, a deal to bring Sa to East London is far from imminent, even if there is truth to claims of West Ham’s interest.
There is undoubtedly one person at Rush Green who rates the 21-year-old playmaker extremely highly.
Rui Pedro Silva is a big fan of West Ham United-linked Gustavo Sa
Nuno was reunited with Rui Pedro Silva, his long-standing number two, late last week. Either side of assisting Nuno at Wolves and Nottingham Forest, Silva enjoyed ten months as the head coach of Famalicao.
There he handed a 17-year-old Gustavo Sa his senior Primeira Liga debut.
“[At that age] his talent was already standing out. [Sa demonstrated] a different tactical knowledge of the game, a maturity and leadership beyond the norm for his age,” Silva told Radio Renascenca in December before returning to Wolves to join Rob Edwards’ staff.
“His competitiveness was enormous. He wanted to win everything and demanded a lot from himself.”
That Gustavo Sa has captained Famalicao in Portugal’s top-flight at the age of 21 comes as little surprise.
“[Sa is a leader] in training, in the game, and in how he behaves,” Silva added. “He was always capable of doing what nobody expected. A pass, a decision, a different technical move.”
The obvious comparison to draw is with Mateus Fernandes; a former teammate of his in the Portugal Under-21 set-up. The fact that Gustavo Sa accumulated seven yellow cards last season, while topping the charts at Famalicao for both key passes and fouls committed per game, suggests that the former FC Porto starlet shares Fernandes’ effervescent blend of guile and grit.
As Radio Renascenca analyst Francisco Sousa puts it, Gustavo Sa boasts “very interesting technical and physical characteristics.
“He presses close to the striker, has good reading of the game and positional sense.”
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West Ham need a Fernandes replacement following his £85 million move to Tottenham. Ex claims that ESTAC Troyes talisman Martin Adeline is a priority target, while Jordan James, Sydie Peck and James McAtee have been linked.
A £17 million deal for Gustavo Sa is anything but imminent. This is not the first time the notoriously excitable Portuguese press have got ahead of themselves.
But if West Ham feel that there are more Fernandes-type talents to be found in Iberia, Rui Pedro Silva’s talent ID may yet come to the fore.
“It’s not easy to find this type of personality in football,” Silva said in a separate interview, this time with FlashScore. “He has the ability to slow down the game at the crucial moment and make the right choice, which is often unexpected and unconventional.
“He has the physical robustness of a box-to-box midfielder, but he can play as an attacking midfielder and break through in scoring opportunities.”
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“He manages to have both types of maturity. He has an extraordinary tactical understanding for his age and above-average maturity as a human being,” added a man who also operated as Nuno’s right-hand man at Tottenham, Valencia, Porto and Rio Ave.
“I think he will be able to take a leap to the next level and I believe he has the necessary maturity to identify what the best step will be. Gustavo has a very stable personality and will be able to handle the adversities that exist at the highest level.
“I feel he’s ready to take that leap.”
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