West Ham agree deal for Algerian wing wizard

West Ham have agreed a £30m fee with Brentford for Algerian winger Said Benrahma.

The 25-year-old lit up the Championship last season, registering 17 goals and nine assists for Thomas Frank’s side. Ever since the Bees lost to Fulham in the 2020 playoff final, speculation has been rife over his future, with several Premier League clubs linked.

Arsenal, Aston Villa and Leeds United were all thought to be interested in the summer but West Ham have recently emerged as favourites to land him. On Friday, 90min reported that the Hammers had submitted a £17m bid for Benrahma, not including add-ons.

And it now seems that a £30m deal has been agreed. According to The Athletic, that fee includes all add-ons, with personal terms still needing to be negotiated.

Benrahma started his career at Nice, enjoying a string of fruitful loan moves between 2013 and 2018 before being snapped up by Brentford. Since arriving in west London, he has been nothing short of sensational, and he will bring invention and flair to West Ham.

After a troubling start to the Premier League season, the Hammers picked up back-to-back wins against Wolves and Leicester before the international break.

This fine form has relieved some of the discontents among the supporters, who had previously expressed their dismay about the club’s performance on and off the pitch.

The sale of youth academy graduate Grady Diangana to West Brom attracted the ire of Hammers fans, and there is also long term resentment over the club’s move to the London Stadium.

David Moyes, who will return to the touchline following a two-week absence after testing positive for coronavirus, will be hoping that his side’s good run of results continues next weekend when they take on Tottenham.

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