SAD NEWS:Jarrod Bowen has been suspended….
When West Ham made Luis Guilherme their first signing of the Julen Lopetegui era hopes and expectations were high.
The bizarre situation surrounding Luis Guilherme is becoming one of the subplots of the new Julen Lopetegui era so far at West Ham.
Hammers fans were seriously excited by the signing of Guilherme given how hard technical director Tim Steidten pushed to make him the club’s first signing of the Lopetegui era.
After chasing him for weeks – and making several trips to Brazil for talks – a £20m deal was struck with Palmeiras.
Some questions were raised over the fee given the 18-year-old had only made 19 senior appearances for the Brazilian club.
His goal and assist record was not as impressive as video montages of his pace, power and skill on YouTube.
Some supporters have been baffled by his lack of involvement so far.
The curious case of West Ham ‘priority target’ Guilherme
It has given rise to conspiracy theories that Lopetegui doesn’t rate Guilherme or think he’s ready for the Premier League having seen him up close.
The confusion around Guilherme stems from the fact Steidten declared he would be ‘a player for now and the future’ when he was unveiled by West Ham.
“A technically gifted attacking player blessed with searing pace and acceleration, elusive dribbling skills and a superb left foot, Luis Guilherme is a hugely promising talent who was identified as a priority target by Technical Director Tim Steidten and Head Coach Julen Lopetegui,” West Ham said when the winger was unveiled.
“He is technically very gifted, but also has very good physical qualities – great pace, strength and stamina, and these are traits that will help him to adapt to the demands of the Premier League and English football,” Steidten added.
“Luis is obviously still very young, but we have no doubt that he is ready to make an impact in the first team here.”
Be the first to comment