He has proven to be the strangest and most pointless Rob Newman signing at West Ham United so far.
Rob Newman was appointed as the West Ham head of recruitment back in 2021, and worked closely with David Moyes to bring in numerous different signings in the summer of 2022.
However, some of the signings he has made have come under close scrutiny, including the likes of Nayef Aguerd and Flynn Downes.
As a result, his future at London Stadium is extremely uncertain, and he’s apparently set to follow David Moyes out the door this summer.
Big things were expected of the 60-year-old when he moved to West Ham from Manchester City two-and-a-half years ago.
He’s massively underperformed in his role though, and his legacy at the club will be underpinned by some really shoddy recruitment.
Since Tim Steidten’s arrival, Newman’s poor signings for the Hammers have come more sharply into focus.
However, one signing stands out alone above all others as the 60-year-old Head of Recruitment’s worst by a long stretch…
Curious case of bizarre Rob Newman signing
Ever heard of the old saying, ‘Too many cooks spoil the broth’?
That’s certainly what it feels like at West Ham right now. We have Director of Football Tim Steidten, Sporting Director Mark Noble, Head of Technical Recruitment & Analysis Max Hahn, Head of International Scouting Moritz Steidten – Tim’s brother, and of course Newman himself – the Head of Recruitment.
Too many people performing similar roles getting in each other’s way.
There is no doubt that if one man will leave the club out of those listed above, it will be Newman. And he only has himself to blame, after recommending some truly terrible signings.
The worst one out of the lot was Brazilian defender Luizao. The 22-year-old joined the Hammers on a free transfer from Sao Paulo in January of 2023, but he is still yet to make a senior appearance for the club.
West Ham allegedly want to sell the Brazilian, and are demanding around £4 million for his signature.
Unsurprisingly, there haven’t been any takers yet.
At 22, Luizao is more than old enough to be starting senior games regularly, and the fact that he’s still involved with the under-21s tells us all we need to know about his ability, or lack thereof.
I wouldn’t be surprised at all to see the centre-back return to Brazil this summer.
His contract at the club runs until the summer of 2026, but I just don’t think any clubs will be willing to pay any kind of substantial fee for him.
Perhaps he’s someone who we will just have to release and cut our losses on.
Luizao has undoubtedly been the worst Rob Newman signing over the past two seasons in my opinion.
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