West Ham saw a transfer for Ibrahim Osman as a ‘risky punt’ not worth taking as fans vent their anger after Brighton seal a deal.
West Ham would not be West Ham if fans weren’t divided over one thing or another it seems.
It’s what makes our great club so interesting and frustrating in equal measure.
But when supporters look at other – albeit much smaller – clubs such as Brighton, everything seems to be much more aligned and in tunes at times. From the outside at least.
Now the January transfer window has closed Brighton have actually sparked a fresh debate among West Ham’s fanbase.
And it all revolves around teenage winger Ibrahim Osman.
Fans vent anger after Brighton seal deal
Both West Ham and Brighton were heavily linked with a move for the Ghanaian talent during the winter window.
As exclusively reported on Hammers News, the top source inside West Ham revealed the club saw a bid for Osman knocked back by Nordsjællands. It was claimed the deal was complicated by agent demands and the club’s valuation.
In the end 19-year-old Osman – who came through the same Right to Dream Academy as Mohammed Kudus – remained with the Danish side.
It was claimed by a club insider that majority owner David Sullivan had been advised to steer clear of the move by a ‘trusted advisor’ despite technical director Tim Steidten pushing for the player.
Some believed the Hammers might revisit the move in the summer window.
But just days after the window closed, it was announced that Brighton have agreed a deal to sign Osman in the summer for around £16.5m – as reported by the likes of The Athletic.
That announcement has sparked almost incessant bickering among West Ham fans since.
Some feel Steidten – who is attracting genuine interest from Liverpool – has been undermined and that the Hammers have missed out to a Premier League rival such as Brighton for a top young talent.
Others point out that, until a few weeks ago, nobody had ever heard of Osman. And they point to his statistics as evidence that he has hardly been tearing up the Danish league either.
Well West Ham saw transfer for Osman as a ‘risky punt’ not worth taking as fans vent their anger after Brighton seal a deal.
West Ham saw transfer for Osman as ‘risky punt’
That’s according to Hammers board confidant Sean Whetstone, who counts Sullivan and vice-chair Karren Brady among his close contacts.
And Whetstone claims an insider has admitted there is a chance they may have missed out on a superstar.
“So Brighton have reportedly agreed a pre-contract with Nordsjarlland for Ibrahim Osman worth up to £19.1m even though he can’t sign formally until 1st July,” Whetstone said.
“One would think agents have asked for a multi million pound fee on top on that. Hopefully they worked out who was the right agent after much confusion.
“Some claim a pre-contract is not worth the paper it is written on and can easily be got out of by either side.
“A West Ham club insider commented: “Time will tell if we dodged a bullet or missed out on a superstar. It was too expensive for a punt. Then there was the agent thing.”
Time will tell whether West Ham have dropped a clanger or swerved a costly mistake over Osman.
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