Over the last week, there has been much talk of West Ham United reunions; from the appointment of Nuno Espirito Santo’s long-time number two to the potential £17 million arrival of Gustavo Sa from Famalicao.
Nuno and Rui Pedro Silva are back together again. Former flatmates and long-time confidantes, West Ham United is the eighth club that the two Iberian coaches have worked together at.
Either side of spells on the sidelines at Nottingham Forest and Wolves, Silva spent a brief stint as the head coach of Portuguese outfit Famalicao.
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There, Silva handed a Primeira Liga debut to Gustavo Sa. While reports of an imminent £17 million deal for the Portugal U21 international appear wide of the mark, Gustavo Sa is one to watch closely as the pursuit of potential Mateus Fernandes replacements ramps up.
The task of finding one, meanwhile, falls on the shoulders of Nils Koppen.
Koppen was appointed as West Ham’s Director of Player Recruitment on Saturday. Talking of reunions, it has not taken long for reports to emerge claiming that the 41-year-old Belgian is keen to raid former employers FC Copenhagen.
West Ham United linked with Copenhagen duo Gabriel Pereira and Youssoufa Moukoko
Koppen only spent nine months in Denmark, but he clearly made a big impression.
Copenhagen CEO Jacob Lauesen penned a grateful, glowing farewell to the former Rangers and PSV director last week. Koppen, he said, ‘delivered outstanding work’ at the capital, departing amid nothing but goodwill.
That goodwill may be tested, though, if West Ham come calling for a couple of players who impressed Koppen at the Parken Stadium.
According to Portuguese reporter Pablo Oliveira, West Ham have added Copenhagen’s £20 million-rated former Gil Vicente defender Gabriel Pereira to their summer wishlist. Even more interestingly, speculation has emerged suggesting that ex-Dortmund wonderkid Youssoufa Moukoko is under consideration [via Irons Watch].
Once the most talked about teenager arguably in the whole of European football, Moukoko enjoyed the most prolific campaign of his senior career during Koppen’s short stint in Copenhagen. He scored 18 times in all competitions. And, for the first time in a while, the 21-year-old indicated that he could step out of the shadow of asphyxiating expectations and damaging off-field accusations [per Sky Germany].
Now, it is not uncommon for directors or coaches to bring a few trusted lieutenants with them to new clubs. Tim Steidten knew Niclas Fullkrug from Werder Bremen, after all. If he’d had his way, Steidten might have brought Victor Boniface to East London too.
Koppen was instrumental in Ismael Saibari’s transfer to PSV from Genk, meanwhile. The Belgian worked as Genk’s youth scout before taking on a similar role in the Netherlands in 2018. Saibari, who completed a £50 million move to Bayern Munich during a stellar World Cup campaign with Morocco, would follow in Koppen’s footsteps.
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Around the same time, Jordy Bawuah also took the Koppen path from Genk to PSV.
And after Koppen left Lommel SK for Genk in 2016 – having spent nearly a decade working for the Limburg club’s academy – no fewer than five Lommel youngsters would sign for the four-time Belgian champions on his watch.
Nils Koppen speaks about his ‘first focus’ at the London Stadium
Does this confirm that Koppen will take Pereira and Moukoko to West Ham? No. But what it does show is that, while Koppen has spoken about the need to be ‘creative’ and think ‘outside the box’ when scouring the market for bargain signings, he is not averse to dipping his toes into more familiar waters.
“I am really pleased to have this fantastic opportunity and very much looking forward to joining such a big club and being a part of something new. I’m also looking forward to working with Nuno – he is a very experienced and highly-respected head coach,” Koppen said during his official unveiling at the London Stadium.
“The first focus will obviously be the transfer window and identifying the correct players to move us forward next season. We also want to keep the core squad intact.
“They had a very good run at the end of the Premier League season, so if we can keep that together and not make too many changes, we can start off with a good base.
“Nuno has emphasised that we all must have our focus together in the same direction. “For any new players coming in, they have to be fully on board for what we want to achieve and feel what the expectations are for a big club. It is a huge honour to represent West Ham United.”
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