Former Premier League and Brazil star David Luiz has commented on Fabricio Bruno with his West Ham move in the balance.
West Ham are currently sweating on whether Fabricio Bruno will be their first signing of the summer.
The Hammers were widely reported to have sealed a deal with Flamengo for the Brazil centre-back.
Transfer reporter Fabrizio Romano even gave West Ham’s move for Bruno his trademark ‘here we go’ – a line only reserved for deals he believes are set in stone.
But last night the Bruno deal hit a wall with claims the 28-year-old is now demanding better terms.
Brazilian journalist Vene Casagrande is even reporting that West Ham’s £12.5m deal with Flamengo for Bruno could now collapse.
There was a further twist overnight after it was claimed Hammers technical director Tim Steidten has turned to other targets while in Brazil trying to get the Bruno deal done.
First Hammers signing hits the skids
Bruno clearly thinks he is worth more than West Ham are currently offering.
With the move in jeopardy the last thing Steidten needs is a high-profile name talking up Bruno.
But that’s exactly what has happened.
David Luiz has commented on Bruno with his West Ham move in the balance.
West Ham fans will remember Luiz from his time with Chelsea, PSG and the Brazil national side.
Luiz is now 37 but is still playing for – you guessed it – Flamengo.
Luiz is actually Bruno’s central defensive partner for Flamengo. So he is well placed to talk about the West Ham target.
What he has said, though, might alert other clubs to Bruno and scupper West Ham’s hopes.
Luiz comments on Bruno with move in balance
Luiz chose his words carefully as he knows that the West Ham move is ‘not done’.
But he says Bruno is good enough to play for any club in the world.
“I can’t talk until it’s done,” Luiz told Mundo RN.
“But what I can tell you is that both he and many of the players here have the quality to play for any team in the world.”
Thanks for that David.
It has made a refreshing change to see the Hammers actually operating with efficiency in the transfer market with this deal.
But it is rather typical of West Ham’s luck with transfers down the years that there has been a snag.
Usually Brazilian talents make their way to Europe in their late teens, early 20s. So West Ham signing a 28-year-old who has only ever played in Brazil was being seen as something of a gamble by some fans.
Praise could attract rival suitors
So if West Ham can get the move back on track, Luiz’s comments offer great reassurance given he has played in the Premier League himself.
Bruno stands 6ft 4in tall and is very much a physical, brave, whole-hearted defender. He has everything needed to become a real Hammers cult hero if he can adapt.
Some West Ham fans feel he appears to lack pace, which is a concern coming into the quickest and toughest league in the world. But those fears are unfounded as Bruno is reportedly one of the fastest centre-backs in the league.
West Ham would be getting a real leader of men whose key strengths are positioning, concentration, tackling and passing.
And they certainly need one after shipping 74 goals last season, the most they’ve ever conceded in the the Premier League.
Bruno has been a standout performer, not just for Flamengo but in the Brazilian league in the last year.
You can check out Bruno in action in the video below.
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