A young star has confirmed he’ll be leaving Arsenal imminently and a Hammers board source says it’s for West Ham.
Arsenal lured away West Ham’s captain last summer when they signed Declan Rice for £105m.
Now it seems the Hammers could be taking a player from Arsenal who had been earmarked as a potential future Gunners skipper.
West Ham and Arsenal are both going to be very active in the summer transfer window.
But while the Gunners are eyeing minor tweaks to fine tune their title-challenging team, West Ham face a major rebuild.
Mikel Arteta’s fellow Basque Country boss Julen Lopetegui must sign at least another six players, possibly more depending on sales.
The Hammers are planning to shift a number of players not in Lopetegui’s plans in order to raise further transfer funds.
When Rice was sold to Arsenal for a British record fee at the time, West Ham spent the money expertly well.
Hammers turn to Arsenal for third capture of summer
Technical director Tim Steidten managed to beat the Gunners to star Mohammed Kudus and his Ajax teammate Edson Alvarez for a combined £72.5m.
The Hammers have changed their transfer recruitment policy now that Steidten has full control.
The club is looking to sign young, talented players whose contract situation means they are available for reasonable fees.
Many of them are being targeted before they come onto the radar of elite clubs or those leaving such outfits in search of regular game time, much like the Red Bull model.
And it seems that has led West Ham to Arsenal for their third signing of the summer.
West Ham have already signed veteran goalkeeper Wes Foderingham on a free transfer and 18-year-old Brazilian teen sensation Luis Guilherme for around £25m all in.
Two positions Lopetegui and Steidten are desperate to strengthen next is centre-back and back-up left-back.
West Ham want someone as back-up to Emerson Palmieri.
Now a star has confirmed he’ll leave Arsenal imminently and a board source says it’s for West Ham.
Star to leave Arsenal and board source says it’s for West Ham
Promising Gunners defender and regular youth captain Luis Brown is definitely leaving Arsenal having not been offered a contract.
And he is expected to sign for West Ham on Monday.
Brown has been linked with West Ham of late but some reports had suggested the Gunners may yet offer the 18-year-old a contract.
He will now leave Arsenal, though, and Hammers insider Sean Whetstone says the left-back – who can also play centre-back – is set to join West Ham.
Brown has special ties to West Ham.
He is the grandson of West Ham legend Ken Brown, who played 474 times in the claret and blue between 1953-1967, winning the 1964 FA Cup and the 1965 European Cup Winners’ Cup. Brown’s dad Kenny is also West Ham’s academy manager.
It’s not clear whether Brown is being signed for the youth team or the first team at this stage.
But given the club seriously lacks depth in the positions Brown plays, he could well go from Arsenal’s youth setup to West Ham’s first team squad.
‘Expected to sign for the Hammers on Monday’
“Arsenal Defender Luis Brown has confirmed that he will be leaving Arsenal when his scholarship contract expires at the end of June,” Whetstone revealed.
“The 18-year-old son of West Ham Academy Manager Kenny Brown progressed all the way through the ranks at the club’s Hale End Arsenal academy, wasn’t offered a professional contract by Arsenal.
“Brown has been training with West Ham and is now expected to sign for the Hammers on 1 July.
“During his time at Arsenal Brown, who can play at left-back or centre-back, made 31 appearances for the U18s, scoring three goals. He often captained the team last season. Brown also made his Premier League 2 debut as a substitute against Southampton and was named on the bench in the UEFA Youth League.”
In a profile piece on Arsenal’s official website, Brown explained the reasons he initially chose Arsenal over West Ham as a coveted young player.
“Growing up in a die-hard West Ham household didn’t make it an easy choice,” Brown said.
“But after speaking with my family it became clear that there was only one option.
“Arsenal had the better coaches, the better facilities and the better players. Once I’d decided, there was no turning back. It was time for Hale End.”
Now it seems Brown has come full circle as he joins West Ham under a manager and technical director who have insisted they are keen to build a new-look side around young players.