Adama Traore became West Ham United’s fourth signing of the January transfer window on Wednesday and, if reports are to be believed, number five might not be too far away.
Former Barcelona, Aston Villa and Spain winger Adama Traore joined from Fulham to the tune of just £2 million on Wednesday lunchtime. Thus, following in the footsteps of Taty Castellanos, Pablo Felipe and Keiber Lamadrid.
Nuno Espirito Santo wanted to refresh and rebuild West Ham United’s forward line. And with four new faces, plus the departures of Niclas Fullkrug and Luis Guilherme, he has done just that with a few days to spare.
Now, attention turns to the other end of the pitch. The Hammers still have the worst defensive record in the Premier League. Something Nuno – who took both Wolves and Nottingham Forest into Europe thanks largely to an excellent defensive record – is determined to change.
How do you FEEL about West Ham signing Antonin Kinsky? 🧤 🇨🇿
A mistake? Or a masterstroke?
West Ham are hoping to sign Antonin Kinsky from bitter rivals Tottenham Hotspur on an initial loan deal, with an option to make the transfer permanent in the summer. Kinsky, a £12.5 million signing from Slavia Prague, has suddenly emerged as the most likely goalkeeping acquisition with Bento Matheus destined to stay in Saudi Arabia.
Bento Matheus is staying at Al-Nassr as West Ham United hold Antonin Kinsky talks
West Ham made a bid for Al-Nassr goalkeeper Bento at the beginning of the year. Like Kinsky, the Londoners wanted to sign the Brazil international on loan, with a £10 million purchase option.
Just last week, South American oracle Tim Vickery talked up the transfer. Bento, a teammate of Lucas Paqueta’s for the Selecao, is the ‘sure thing’, he said. A safe pair of hands, and one who should not need too much time to adapt.
Initially, Al-Nassr appeared open to a deal. But not anymore.
Serie A outfit Genoa walked away after the Saudi Pro League powerhouses got cold feet. Now, their veteran head coach Jorge Jesus has shut the door and locked it behind him.
“Bento will stay with us until the end of the season,” former Benfica and Sporting Lisbon boss Jesus tells Aawsat. “Al-Nasr have two of the best goalkeepers in the league, and the choice of the starting goalkeeper depends on the circumstances of each match.”
Thomas Frank wary of letting Kinsky leave Tottenham Hotspur
Links have also been made with Filip Jorgensen of Chelsea, Manchester City duo James Trafford and Stefan Ortega, plus Toulouse glovesman Guillaume Restes.
Kinsky now appears the most likely, though, even if Thomas Frank is wary that a Tottenham sale could rebound in their faces should anything happen to Guglielmo Vicario.
A potential swoop for Wolves veteran Sam Johnstone, as has been mooted in the last few days, may ease those concerns.
“In general, happy with Kinsky. He’s a great keeper,” the former Brentford boss told a press conference on Tuesday ahead of Tottenham’s Champions League clash at Eintracht Frankfurt. “I think any player wants to play.
“But we also need good players if something happens with Vic for example.”
West Ham target likened to Chelsea legend Petr Cech
The latest former Slavia Prague player to potentially pull on the West Ham jersey after Tomas Soucek, Vladimir Coufal and El Hadji Malick Diouf, Kinsky was likened a young Petr Cech while winning the First League title in 2024.
His arrival could speed up the departure of a man who has only played five times since moving to the English capital for £18 million. West Ham are willing to cash in on Mads Hermansen, as first reported by Hammers News in November.
What would you rather do? Keep Hermansen or sign Antonin Kinsky?
Tell us why in the comments!
“He’s a big pro. He works on himself all the time,” Martin Shejbal, who worked with Kinsky during a loan spell at Pardubice, told BBC Sport following his move to Tottenham. “He got to the top thanks to the fact that he works harder and more than other players and goalkeepers.”
“He is open to alternative methods of everything. We spent hours talking about various ways of preparation.
“It’s not always easy for a coach to work with a player like that, because sometimes what he did was not right. On the other side, exactly that mentality makes him an exceptional person and it helped him to achieve what he did.
“I would rather say there are similar personalities [between he and Chelsea icon Cech],” Shejbal added. “Cech was a great professional. When he did some mistakes in the national team’s games, he never really made a victim out of himself, he would not be drowned in regret. Kinsky is the same.”
“I expect him to become a really quality Premier League goalkeeper.”
Receive a digest of our best West Ham content each week direct to your mailbox
