In a strange twist of fate, three midfielders who were linked with a move to West Ham United around the January transfer window could now form a new-look central triumvirate across the Channel in France with Marseille.
West Ham reportedly held talks with Quinten Timber, the former Feyenoord captain. He would join Marseille instead for just £4.5 million, a bargain deal secured with his contract on its last legs in Rotterdam.
According to talkSPORT, Arsenal rejected a loan offer for Ethan Nwaneri from their London rivals too. The teenager scored on his Marseille debut in the recent 3-1 victory over Ligue 1 title-chasers RC Lens.
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Finally, while West Ham United eventually secured the services of Axel Disasi on deadline day, Marseille snapped up Nigerian enforcer Tochukwu Nnadi from Belgian outfit Zulte Waregem.
A transfer which caught Eric Chelle – his head coach on the international stage – by surprise.
Nigeria boss Eric Chelle may have expected West Ham United to sign Tochukwu Nnadi
Reports in December claimed that sporting director Mark Noble wanted to bring Tochukwu Nnadi to the London Stadium. The Hammers had allegedly scouted the 22-year-old on a number of occasions over in Belgium, while lining up a cut-price January bid [Africa Foot].
Why no offer arrived, then, is anyone’s guess. Perhaps it was because Nuno Espirito Santo felt that money needed to be spent on centre-forwards, before turning his attention to centre-halves.
Furthermore, with Tomas Soucek, Freddie Potts and Soungoutou Magassa all battling for a starting spot alongside Mateus Fernandes, the midfield is actually one of the stronger areas of the West Ham squad these days.
Speaking to L’Équipe, Chelle admits that he expected a transfer to happen sooner rather than later. He did not foresee Nnadi becoming a Marseille player though.
“I watched him and wondered what he was still doing in that [Zulte Waregem] team. It’s a good move by Olympique Marseille. I expected him to go to the Premier League!” says Chelle, who secured Nigeria a third-place finish at the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations.
“He’s very quick, powerful, and capable of winning back possession from opponents, with that aggressive approach over about fifteen meters to chase down the ball carrier.”
“With the ball, he plays a simple game, using his body to protect it. If he’s in an environment where the players support him and give him confidence, he’ll quickly reach his full potential.
“He’s a real gem, this kid. You’ll be surprised because he can be very aggressive on the pitch.”
That is an understatement. Nnadi models himself on N’Golo Kante and Moises Caicedo, and leaves Belgium having accumulated a yellow card every three games on average.
Hammers linked with Flamengo midfielder Evertton Araujo
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Ahead of Saturday’s 3pm kick-off at Burnley, Nuno has a decision to make. Does he stick with the Soucek – Fernandes partnership which worked wonders against Sunderland and Tottenham, but struggled to regain control once Chelsea stamped their authority onto last week’s London derby.
Some are imploring Nuno to recall Freddie Potts. He, like Magassa, has not started a league match since the 3-0 battering by Wolves a month ago.
In the meantime, reports from out of Brazil claim that West Ham are watching Flamengo’s Evertton Araujo ahead of a potential summer bid for Lucas Paqueta’s 22-year-old teammate. Like Nnadi, Araujo is an energetic defensive midfielder whose athleticism could make him a neat fit for the English game.
“West Ham [are] eyeing Everton Araujo. The English club got wind of the player through their scout,” Flamengo reporter Leo Jose wrote on X this week, albeit without revealing the identity of the scout in question.
“The 22-year-old midfielder is now being closely watched by the London team.
“I’ve also heard that West Ham values the player at around 12 million euros [£10.5 million]. Flamengo are holding out for a much higher price, given he’s a young talent with European market potential.”
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