West Ham new boy Felipe Anderson aims big
July 16, 2018
West Ham have signed midfielder Felipe Anderson for a club-record fee of £36m from Lazio.
The Brazilian wants to become a ‘club legend’ for the Hammers, with his new team suggesting he is ‘one of the most exciting talents in Europe’.
The fee could rise to as much as £41.5m depending on add-ons and eclipses the £22m West Ham paid Toulouse for France Under-21 defender Issa Diop last month.
The 25-year-old scored 34 goals in 177 appearances for Lazio and was in Brazil’s Olympic gold medal-winning squad in 2016. Anderson wants to be a big success in east London.
“West Ham is a club with a lot of tradition. Lots of great players have played here, like Bobby Moore, Carlos Tevez and Di Canio,” he said.
“I’m aiming big. Who knows, maybe I could hit their heights and be a legend here too. I’m really happy to be here. It’s a dream come true.”
Manual Pellegrini, who replaced David Moyes at the London Stadium in May, has also signed Paraguay defender Fabian Balbuena, England midfielder Jack Wilshere and Ukraine winger Andriy Yarmolenko in the past week.
It is clear that West Ham believe capturing Anderson’s services on a four-year deal is their biggest statement to date this summer.
“We believe we have signed one of the most exciting talents in European football,” said West Ham director of football Mario Husillos.
“This is a very big statement.” West Ham are 7.50 to be relegated from the Premier League next season.
