Some West Ham fans are unhappy new majority owner Daniel Kretinsky has sold Mateus Fernandes to bitter rivals Tottenham Hotspur – but he made a last-ditch attempt to sell him to Man United instead.
West Ham have agreed to sell star player Mateus Fernandes to Spurs for £85m with the deal set to be announced later this week pending a successful medical.
Man United had been battling Tottenham to sign the brilliant, all-action Hammers midfielder over the last month.
Old Trafford was reported to be Fernandes’ preferred destination, with the lure of Champions League football, playing for one of the world’s biggest clubs and alongside idol and namesake Bruno key.
Kretinsky made 11th hour Man United call over Fernandes
West Ham were adamant they wanted £85m in order to sell Fernandes – especially after Daniel Kretinsky became majority stakeholder and went on record to say the club do not need to sell players for financial reasons.
Kretinsky was not bluffing and stuck to the eyebrow-raising valuation for a player who, while clearly hugely talented, has been relegated two seasons in a row.
Fernandes to Spurs for £85m! Give us your immediate reaction to the breaking news👇
While Man United – and Arsenal – were reluctant to go above £60m, Spurs ended up blowing rival suitors out of the water by meeting the £85m asking price in one upfront payment.
The deal is a record for a Championship club – a division West Ham are in because of Tottenham.
Some fans are livid Kretinsky and the board have sold West Ham’s best player to their fiercest rivals other than Millwall.
Especially as it comes a year after the Hammers sold Mohammed Kudus to Spurs.
Many supporters were hoping Fernandes would be sold to an elite club like Manchester United to make the move a lot more palatable.
Tottenham fans are already taunting their West Ham counterparts, goading them with jibes such as “feeder club”.
West Ham chief tried to avoid selling Fernandes to Spurs
Some Hammers fans are angry Kretinsky’s first act of note regarding team matters has been to sell the club’s top player to one of their biggest rivals.
Those fans have suggested they would rather have taken £10-15m less in order to sell to Man United.
Nils Koppen helped build PSV’s title-winning squad! What do you want from him at West Ham?
Other Hammers supporters feel Kretinsky has done the right thing by driving the best possible deal for West Ham United.
But it seems the billionaire did try his best to avoid selling to Spurs by making an 11th hour call to Man United.
According to leading Man United account Utd Report, quoting Red Devils ITK SullyTalkz, to its near two million followers, Man United offered West Ham a package worth £85m for Fernandes but only £70m was guaranteed with around £15m in add-ons.
The Red Devils offered wages of close to £170k a week – some £110k less than the reported £280k Spurs will pay the Portuguese.
There was the chance for a late twist on Tuesday morning when, just hours before West Ham accepted Tottenham’s offer, Kretinsky gave Manchester United the chance to match Spurs’ bid of £85m paid entirely up front in order to do the deal with them instead, but the Old Trafford outfit refused.
That may give Hammers fans unhappy at selling to Spurs some relief that Kretinsky did at least try to avoid the situation.
Now all eyes will be on West Ham’s own ambition in going out and making top signings – as well as keeping the likes of Jarrod Bowen – to ensure they bounce back to the Premier League at the first time of asking.
Receive a digest of our best West Ham content each week direct to your mailbox
