OPINION
The summer is fast turning into a great one for West Ham fans, following the arrival of Manuel Pellegrini as manager, but the board must ensure they get the reported deal for Filipe Anderson over the line.
Deals have already been done for Issa Diop, goalkeeper Lukasz Fabianski, Ryan Fredericks and Jack Wilshere, with Andriy Yarmolenko on the cusp of a move too.
But Anderson is the big one. Sky Sports has reported that the club is in advanced talks and that all parties want an agreement to be reached.
It says that the sides are getting closer to agreement on a fee, the payment structure and potential clauses.
However, it does say there is one detail that could scupper the deal – Felipe Anderson’s personal terms.
No one wants to be held to ransom, but surely a compromise can be reached for a player who is reportedly only on £24k-a-week with Lazio.?
A picture from Gazzetta Dello Sport shows the wages for all Serie A clubs, with Anderson on just €1.4million a year.
💰 Serie A team's wage bill, along with their highest paid players, #Higuain and #Bonucci lead the league in earnings.
(via Gazzetta dS) pic.twitter.com/JMach9W8gD
— Kush (@footballkush) September 7, 2017
We don’t know how much he’s demanding to join West Ham, but after paying a reported £100k-a-week for Jack Wilshere, there’s surely a lot of wriggle room in this deal. And Anderson will be aware of how much West Ham are paying other players.
Anderson will bring the craft and attacking flair that West Ham need so badly at the London Stadium next season – especially with Manuel Lanzini set to miss a big chunk of the season.
It’s the biggest deal of the summer, and one that’s set to smash the club transfer record, currently the £21.9million West Ham spent on Issa Diop earlier this summer.
We’re confident a deal will get done but after all the good the board has done this summer, they must ensure they don’t let the whopper off the hook because they’re not prepared to pay a big wage hike.
