Manchester United are preparing an opening bid for West Ham midfielder Mateus Fernandes, and Ederson is the name now tied to the move as the 21-year-old becomes a priority target. West Ham value him at around £80m, which puts the two clubs on different numbers before talks have even begun.
Fernandes arrived at West Ham for an initial fee of £38m last summer from Southampton. Manchester United are unlikely to entertain that £80m figure, so any bid will have to start well below the valuation and test how far West Ham are willing to move.
West Ham and Matheus Fernandes
West Ham are in no rush to sell. They also are not ruling out keeping Fernandes to help them achieve promotion back to the Premier League at the first time of asking, which gives them a reason to resist a quick sale even with interest building.
That stance is built on what they saw last season. The club’s decision makers believe he was one of the best young players in the Premier League, and they also believe he has the potential to become as good as Declan Rice, who was sold to Arsenal for £105m in 2023.
Simon Rusk on his tackling
Fernandes’ profile helps explain why he has drawn attention beyond one club. He was among the Premier League’s toughest tacklers last season and sits in the top 10 Premier League midfielders for distance covered, numbers that show a player who works on both sides of the ball.
Simon Rusk, who worked with him at Southampton, said, “That's no surprise that his tackling stats are very high,”. He added, “Both speaking to him and observing him, I could see that would be a feature in his game - and a strength.”
Russell Martin’s view
Russell Martin described how Fernandes was used at Southampton, saying, “He was used as a little bit more as a No 10, a little bit more of an advanced role,”. Martin also said, “And that would lend himself to the defensive side of the game. What Matty wanted to do, he wanted to run. He wanted to be involved in the game as much as possible.”
Arsenal and Paris Saint-Germain are also reported to be interested, so Manchester United are not moving alone. The next step is whether their opening bid can land anywhere near a number West Ham will consider, or whether Fernandes stays where he is while the clubs wait for a compromise.
