As the January transfer window draws near, I thought it would be intriguing – if not jaw dropping, frankly, to look back at West Ham’s top ten most expensive signings, though the value some players delivered for their hefty fees leaves more questions than answers!
- Lucas Paquetá – £51m (from Lyon, 2022)Paquetá arrived as a marquee signing. His flair, vision, and ability to dictate play have made him a fan favourite. However, speculation about his future and consistency have overshadowed his time at the club – and he will be leaving in the summer.
- Sébastien Haller – £45m (from Eintracht Frankfurt, 2019)
Haller was expected to be the striker West Ham had long been searching for. Instead, he struggled to adapt to the Premier League and was sold at a significant loss. Ironically, he later thrived at Ajax and Borussia Dortmund, leaving fans wondering what might have been.
- Mateus Fernandes – £42m (from Southampton, 2022)Still early too judge – yet under Nuno West Ham fans are finally seeing the player they thought they were signing.
- Max Kilman – £40m (from Wolves, 2024)Kilmans stats at Wolves were impressive, yet he has done little to justify his high transfer fee.
- Mohammed Kudus – £38m (from Ajax, 2023)Had an outstanding first season, yet subsequently faded and forced through a move to London rivals Tottenham whose fans have since said he blows hot and cold. The Hammers sold for £55m so made a profit on the player.
- Felipe Anderson – £36m (from Lazio, 2018)
Anderson’s time at West Ham was a rollercoaster. He dazzled in his first season with skill and creativity but faded quickly, struggling to maintain form. Ultimately, he left with fans feeling his talent was never fully realised in claret and blue. West Ham sold at a huge loss when the Brazilian returned to Lazio for £2.6m with the Hammers having a 50% sell on clause. After four years in Serie A he left when his contract expired on a free transfer joining Palmeiras.
- Gianluca Scamacca – £35.5m (from Sassuolo, 2022)
The Italian arrived as a powerful striker with high expectations. Despite glimpses of quality, injuries and inconsistency hampered his progress, and he departed after just one season. His short stay left more questions than answers, yet his spell at Atalanta, who he joined for £26.8m has been dogged by injuries suggesting West Ham did well to part ways with the striker.
- Jean-Clair Todibo – £35m (from Nice, 2025)
West Ham beat off competition from Juventus to sign Todibo who was seen as a modern centre-back with pace and ball-playing ability. Fans have questioned his fitness and commitment, and are divided on the player, yet on his day he looks a good player, but lacks consistency.
- Edson Álvarez – £35m (from Ajax, 2023)
The Mexico international and skipper for his team was seen as a solid presence in midfield, bringing steel and tactical discipline. His ability to break up play and shield the defence initially made him a reliable signing, though he picked up more than his fair share of yellow cards! Currently on loan at Fenerbahce he has been a strong performer for the Turkish Super Liga Team who have an option to buy in the summer.
- Nayef Aguerd – £30m (from Rennes, 2022)
Aguerd’s time at West Ham was disrupted by injuries and questions remain about whether he could consistently deliver in the Premier League. He was however one of the standout performers in the La Liga last season when on loan at Real Sociedad and has excelled at Marseille following his €23m transfer in the summer.
What are your thoughts? Please share in the comments section!
1. Think it is fair Paqueta leave this Summer. I’m a fan of how so many times he has been battling away (picking up yellow cards) for the club in a dour midfield short on ability, technical skill and speed. Now with a good midfield he can play his game more. Sometimes he loses the ball too often, so would like it if he would play simple sometimes and help the flow of the ball through our midfield.
2. Sad about Haller, such a good forward.
4&8. Not sure about Kilman, he is not a blood & guts player, so perhaps he is better than he seems because he is so low-key but…
I hope with consistent selection and a manager who knows how to organize a defence, that Todibo will come good – he is more than able to, now accustomed to the PL. Maybe Kilman is good, but like the idea of Dinos+Todibo. Igor looked very good in his brief cameo, like to see him play more.
9. Alvarez. Never been a fan of his. Players just skip past him, so often late in the tackle, never dominated a single game in midfield, never suddenly popped up in the right spot because he could read a game better than others. I’m baffled
A lot of the other players seemed to want out for a variety of reasons, including Aguerd.
It does show how inconsistent we are in recruitment and how the club get in a star players (by reputation), say Anderson, who is never going to perform at WHU. Paqueta and Fernandes on the other hand have talent and that bit of steel, willingness to fight for their club even in hard times.
The talent in the Academy seems to be of a very high standard. They need loan periods, they need a chance to develop but when they come through all this as some have, boy are they good and they bring passion, eagerness and real ability. The club has done well in this, have to congratulate them (including the scouts!!!) and with astute recruitment they could save WHU from seasons of drudgery and under achievement.
Recruitment of the quality of Fernanades, Magassa & Summerville is what we need and the staff to achieve this. Crucial time for the club I think and we may just have been fortunate to land on the right kind of manager in NES but can he then also be in charge of recruitment? I think too much to expect of one person and do not know if we still have the right people in place to find the next Fernandes, Paqueta, Magassa, Summerville…
Whatever way you call it, bringing in youth, academy and talented players like Paqueta and Fernandes into the heart of the midfield is a great way to go and a bit of a sweet spot for a club like WHU, but in out recent past we take 1 massive step forward and 3 tottering steps backwards. I hope that stops and the club starts improving gradually and building up again, looking ahead over the next 5 seasons, that is the best way for WHU in my opinion.
Some of the players deemed flops were mismanaged, or unsuitable signings. Scamacca and Haller scored goals as a strike partnership, then we sign them and stick them up top on their own (nod to Nicky Maynard).
And Felipe Anderson went on to be successful in Italy after we let him go for peanuts.
I just wish if we decide on a structure, stick with it rather than just rip it up every time we change manager. And stop being so cheap with managers- go and get the right man and not just who is out of work. Thats the root of a lot of our problems.
Every single player has either faded out of form after a year or so or just failed . A blind monkey would be better at selecting players just by chance . Therefore the suspicion is that there’s something rotten at the core of Westham which sours the good players . The wrong ownership perhaps ?
Would say that’s a bit harsh/early on Paqueta and Fernandes.
Haller needed a partner -might that have been Fornals?- but was expected to be an Antonio-like striker, which he wasn’t. He got back to his best at Ajax.
Kudus was extremely skilled, strong and great at regaining and protecting the ball. He was fun to watch. But at times he was either unhappy or lacked motivation, maybe because he felt that he was not played in his favorite position.