Tim Steidten tells West Ham why they are missing him after board’s admission

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Tim Steidten has made it clear to West Ham why his absence is already being felt, after the board made an honest admission behind the scenes.

Former Hammers transfer chief Tim Steidten says he has been out of work by choice since being sacked by West Ham after the appointment of Graham Potter.

The German revealed he has been offered a host of jobs in various top leagues but is waiting for a position where there is more structure and clarity than he had at West Ham.

Ex-Bayer Leverkusen and Werder Bremen sporting director Steidten was just 18 months into what he stated would be a five-year project at the London Stadium when he was axed by David Sullivan.

Steidten’s departure was ultimately hastened by a botched summer splurge which saw £155m committed to the signing of nine players.

There was excitement around West Ham last summer when Steidten pledged to rebuild the squad around young, dynamic players after he assumed full control of recruitment following David Moyes’ exit.

Steidten still divides opinion six months after Hammers axe

Yet somehow Steidten and Julen Lopetegui took the Premier League’s second oldest squad and made it THE oldest.

Since leaving east London, Steidten has been linked with Crystal Palace, Newcastle and even Barcelona.

The Hammers reunited Potter with Kyle Macaulay as the club’s new head of recruitment, paying Chelsea £1.2m to bring the talent spotter to east London.

But West Ham had a quiet January window, only managing to sign Evan Ferguson on loan from Brighton – a move which did not work out for either club or the player.

A specially extended summer transfer window gave West Ham the perfect chance to perform the big overhaul needed as Potter promised an “exciting and interesting” window.

Potter and Macaulay are genuinely targeting a younger, more athletic profile of player – and importantly the right characters too.

Sullivan has reprised his role as West Ham’s de facto director of football and has confirmed Steidten will not be replaced.

West Ham’s board recently stated Sullivan feels he is a better judge of players than the likes of Steidten and former recruitment chiefs Rob Newman and Mario Husillos.

But over seven weeks after the window opened – and six months since Potter’s arrival – the Hammers have only just made their first permanent signing of his tenure.

Steidten tells West Ham they miss him after board’s admission

Concerns have been raised among the fanbase about the lack of signings with the start of the new Premier League season now just four weeks away.

There is a feeling among some West Ham fans that the club may have been too hasty sacking Steidten.

However, others lay much of the blame for the club’s current situation – where sales are needed and the Hammers have very few valuable assets to offload – squarely at Steidten’s door.

Now Steidten has told West Ham why they are missing him after a blunt board admission.

The Hammers board made a stark claim about how they are finding this crucial transfer window so far.

West Ham’s hierarchy stated ‘it’s a tough market this summer’.

And in a new, lengthy and wide-ranging interview with German site Transfermarkt, Steidten has suggested West Ham may be missing his deal-making expertise.

When discussing how he operates and why he struggled to really make his mark at West Ham, Steidten says his 20 years of experience have proved the only way to get deals done is to fly out wherever and whenever necessary to meet players in person and show them how much you want them.

“Funnily enough, I received a letter from Lufthansa congratulating me on my new status,” Steidten said when talking about how much travelling he does to watch players.

“I was told that I was on a plane every other day and had flown to the moon and back six times! I can’t even count the time I spent on planes; it’s brutal. But I have the ambition to see players live. There are sporting directors and squad planners who take a different approach…

Steidten: Most important thing is to be there in person

“After successful scouting, the decisive factor for me is recruitment: When will you get the player? That was often even more work, being on site, convincing agents, players, and families that the club was the right move…

“I learned the job from the ground up and have been doing it for 20 years, so I have a good network and can assess situations involving agents, players, and families well. The most important thing here is being able to read the other person’s true interests.

“For some, family is extremely important – so I need to have a lot of contact with them. Others, on the other hand, are loners and don’t want anyone else involved at all. You have to find out what matters to the player.

“The most important thing (with transfer negotiations) is to be there in person…

“You have to take your time and try to get the player on board personally.”

The first signing of the summer from Potter and Macaulay has been a promising start as 20-year-old pacy, powerful left-wingback El Hadji Malick Diouf arrived this week for £19m.

There is a lot more work to do, though, and whether West Ham truly miss Steidten’s deal-making skills will become clear by September 1st.