West Ham have been handed a monumental transfer boost as Mateus Fernandes takes matters into his own hands after Southampton rejected an opening bid for the midfield star.
According to Sky Sports pundit Andy Hinchcliffe, Mateus Fernandes will be among the best three players in the league if he stays in the Championship with Southampton this season.
But if West Ham get their way, Mateus Fernandes will be looking to show off his talent where he really belongs, the Premier League.
The Hammers saw a first bid for 21-year-old Portuguese star Fernandes rejected by the Saints on Tuesday evening.
Saints tell Hammers to cough up £50m for Fernandes
West Ham’s offer reportedly totalled £30m.
Widespread reports claim that was some £20m off what Southampton want to consider letting Fernandes leave for the Hammers.
West Ham have confirmed they cannot afford that for Fernandes.
But the exciting all-action star, who scored the winner in Southampton’s Carabao Cup victory over Northampton on the evening of West Ham’s first bid, remains a key target.
There has been an encouraging update from a Sky Sports journalist close to Jack Sullivan – the son of West Ham majority owner David Sullivan.
Mark McAdam claims talks are ongoing between the Hammers and Saints about a deal for Fernandes while Sullivan weighs up whether to make an improved offer.
In the meantime, West Ham have missed out on other top midfield targets, including Aston Villa’s Jacob Ramsey and Man City’s James McAtee as Newcastle and Forest swoop in.
The Magpies are reportedly paying £40m for highly-rated 24-year-old star Ramsey, who has designs of going to the World Cup with England next summer.
Forest are paying just £20m for McAtee who has proven his talent in the Championship and Premier League.
That is £10m and £30m less respectively than Southampton are said to want for their Championship midfielder.
Fernandes hands West Ham monumental boost by taking action
In terms of logic, those figures don’t really stack up, especially as Ramsey is far more proven in the Premier League.
West Ham need to offload players to raise extra funds in order to be able to fork out any more money for Fernandes.
Hammers fans have been hoping the club might be able to reach a compromise like they did with Leicester over goalkeeper Mads Hermansen.
The Foxes started the summer insisting on at least £30m for Hermansen but have ended up selling to West Ham for less than £18m.
The issue for the Hammers is that the Saints, unlike Leicester, are under no immediate PSR pressure to sell.
With options, and time, running out for Potter, the disparity in valuations between West Ham and Southampton doesn’t appear to bode well.
But player power may well have a big say.
Because Fernandes has handed West Ham a monumental boost by taking action after the Saints snub.
According to a source close to Hammers chief Sullivan, Fernandes has taken matters into his own hands after Southampton rejected West Ham’s £30m bid.
The Saints signed Fernandes from Sporting for £15m last summer.
Fernandes takes matters into his own hands after West Ham bid
So an offer which doubles their money one year on, despite the fact the player played his part in the club’s dismal 12-point relegation campaign, can hardly be described as derisory.
That appears to be how Saints see it with claims they have told Sullivan not to bother returning unless they increase their bid by £20m.
Now according to Claret and Hugh, which counts Sullivan as a key source, Fernandes has ‘made it clear to Southampton that he wishes to leave before the window closes’.
It is also claimed that his agents, Gestifute, are currently in talks with Southampton’s hierarchy as he pushes to secure a move.
The report claims Saints may now be forced to reconsider their stance.
It is no surprise to hear Fernandes and his agents have taken action after seeing Newcastle had a bid of £40m accepted for Ramsey.
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