Nuno Espirito Santo will be without Freddie Potts for the next three matches – starting with West Ham United’s home clash with AFC Bournemouth as the Premier League resumes this weekend.
A red card which threatens to expose a lack of genuine, experienced midfield depth at the manager’s disposal.
Potts will be unavailable against Bournemouth, Liverpool and Fulham. He might not have started all three of those games anyway – Nuno has largely opted for a Tomas Soucek and Mateus Fernandes partnership in recent weeks – but, still, this is a suspension West Ham United could have done without.
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Because if Nuno decides to push Fernandes forward – Pablo Felipe is out for the foreseeable with an injury – that leaves Soucek, Soungoutou Magassa and young Mohamadou Kante as his only remaining deep-lying midfield options following the January departures of Guido Rodriguez, James Ward-Prowse and Andy Irving.
It should come as no surprise, then, that the noises in the media suggest that midfield reinforcements are high on the list of priorities next summer.
An attempted midfield rebuild reportedly means West Ham are keeping a close eye on Flamengo’s Evertton Araujo; a teammate of Lucas Paqueta’s, and a 22-year-old defensive midfielder of real promise.
Speaking to ESPN, a Flamengo ‘CDM’ of the recent past – Luiz Antonio – can even see similarities between Araujo and a young Casemiro.
West Ham United-linked Evertton Araujo is very similar to Casemiro
Rumours of Casemiro’s demise, it turns out, were greatly exaggerated.
In a topsy-turvy Manchester United career, one of the most decorated footballers of his generation looks set to go out on a high. While it is debatable if Casemiro has reached the same levels of his debut Old Trafford campaign in 2022/23, the evergreen 33-year-old has emerged as a driving force in Michael Carrick’s Champions League charge.
Evertton Araujo is unlikely to be on the shortlist of potential successors for Man United – the Red Devils are targeting ‘proven’ Premier League talent – but Flamengo reporter Leo Jose believes West Ham are prepared to take a £10.5 million punt.
“His physical strength is adequate for modern football,” Antonio says of Araujo. “He has good passing, good technique, and marks [opposition forwards] very well. He’s not a guy you’d expect to make a different kind of pass, a through ball that puts you in front of goal but – in terms of marking, physicality, and passing quality – he’s very good at that.”
The feeling is that, while Araujo is a defensively-minded midfielder at first glance, he also possesses that Casemiro-esque ability to pull rabbits out of hats. He is Brazilian, after all.
“If he learns from these older players who are there, if he’s a boy who listens and pays attention to what they say, he can evolve and become a more modern and complete midfielder, addressing any weaknesses he might think he has,” Antonio adds.
“He has practically the same physical characteristics as Casemiro, except Casemiro’s passing is more forward. He provides assists, and his finishing is a bit better. These are characteristics [Araujo] can improve through training.
“Casemiro has very good reading of the game. He reads the game very well despite not being fast. Evertton is fast, stronger, and younger [but] Casemiro’s reading of the game is much greater.
“They are very similar characteristics, with a few details that Casemiro, due to his experience in Europe, brings with him. But he has all the characteristics to become very similar to Casemiro.”
Is the next Casemiro coming to West Ham? 🇧🇷
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Lucas Paqueta could help the Hammers land his Flamengo teammate
Flamengo head coach Filipe Luis was glowing in his assessment of Evertton Araujo following his breakout in Brazil, highlighting the maturity and dedication that makes the youngster stand out.
Furthermore, thanks largely to the deal which took Lucas Paqueta back to the Maracana last month, West Ham have a ‘very good relationship’ with Flamengo these days. Not our words, but the words of La Fla president Luiz Eduardo Baptista.
Araujo is not the only Brazilian midfield dynamo reportedly under consideration. Matheus Martinelli wants to stay at Fluminense, however, amid claims that West Ham submitted a £17 million offer in January [Globo Esporte].
Closer to home, FC Metz’ Senegalese starlet Alpha Toure appeared to confirm West Ham’s interest when quizzed about a potential ‘dream’ move to London a few days ago.
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