Teenage winger Luis Guilherme joined West Ham United earlier this month from Brazilian side Palmeiras.
Luis Guilherme was scouted extensively by Tim Steidten, before Julen Lopetegui brought him to West Ham for a fee believed to be worth around £25 million in total.
The 18-year-old is an exceptional talent, but he is far from proven at the very highest level, so it goes without saying that the Hammers have taken somewhat of a risk by signing him.
I actually love the fact that West Ham are seemingly changing course when it comes to player recruitment this summer.
Signing proven Premier League players in the age range of 26-30 is a decent way to operate but it’s not sustainable in the lomng-term.
The better route to go down, in my view, is top quality scouting leading to young stars of the future being identified.
It’s a far more sustainable way to operate. Sure, there may be some who don’t quite make the grade, but the odd one will undoubtedly become a star.
I’m hopeful that Guilherme will come good – in fact, I have every faith that he’ll be a superstar one day.
And now the Hammers have been given a real ringing endorsement on the winger by someone who knows him very well indeed…
West Ham fans will be buzzing after Luis Guilherme endorsement
The South American teenager is typically Brazilian in the way that he plays with flair, guile and that little bit of magic.
His youthful exuberance and fearless playing style should provide West Ham with something completely different in the final third next season and beyond.
The West Ham new boy has the skillset needed to succeed in the Premier League, but we will all have to be patient with him.
So what can we really expect from Guilherme? Well, the sky’s the limit for the 18-year-old it seems.
Paulo Buosi – the Palmeiras vice-president – absolutely raved about Guilherme, when speaking to Brazilian website UOL.
Buosi said, “Luis spent seven years with us, he was champion in all categories at the base, he wore the professional shirt with great honour and was also champion.”
He continued, “We are very happy with what he built with us. He is an extraordinary boy and one of the biggest sales in the history of Palmeiras.”
“May he have a sensational career, and I am sure that Palmeiras will never leave his heart and that he will never leave the heart of every Palmeiras fan. Palmeiras will be always with him”, Buosi said.
The fact that the vice-president of Palmeiras is speaking so highly about a teenager tells us all we need to know about him as far as I’m concerned.
Guilherme is obviously a supremely talented young footballer, but he quite clearly has his head screwed on as well regarding the way he works and conducts himself.
He has already come across really well when speaking to the Hammers’ in-house media, it’s so easy to forget that he’s still just 18!
I see a long and successful future for Luis Guilherme at West Ham, and I cannot wait to see him in action for us.
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