West Ham United’s pursuit of a midfielder during the January transfer window could see the suddenly upwardly-mobile Premier League outfit enter battle with Bundesliga giants Borussia Dortmund.
Reports have indicated that Nuno Espirito Santo wants an athletic, box-to-box player, specifically.
One capable of bringing pace to a midfield that, thanks to the signing of Mateus Fernandes and the emergence of Freddie Potts, looks a lot more suited to securing Premier League survival than it did when Andy Irving, Guido Rodriguez and James Ward-Prowse were ambling around in slow motion.
Kobbie Mainoo is a leading West Ham target. According to Fabrizio Romano, the Hammers have offered the Manchester United benchwarmer a guaranteed starting role ahead of the 2026 World Cup.
Such reports have not gone down too well in East London, though, as West Ham fans wonder what Mainoo’s arrival would mean for Potts’ development.
Furthermore, if Mainoo is considered to lack the physicality to nail down a spot in Ruben Amorim’s system, a West Ham United coach who demands high levels of intensity and running power in the heart of the field also feels like a potentially awkward fit.
Quinten Timber, Feyenoord’s £23 million-rated dynamo, certainly looks a solid alternative on paper. A ball-carrying, box-crashing number eight who excels when wriggling out of danger and driving forward from deep, Timber fits the mould of a Mateus Fernandes, a Morgan Gibbs-White, or even an Elliott Anderson, to draw comparisons with two of Nuno’s Forest favourites.
Though, as Bundesliga reporter Patrick Berger explains, landing Timber will be no easy task. Not with Borussia Dortmund planning a move of their own.
Jobe Bellingham and co celebrate during Hamburger SV v Borussia Dortmund - Bundesliga
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West Ham United face Borussia Dortmund battle for Feyenoord’s Quinten Timber
That Hammers News source has already explained that Timber, the twin brother of Arsenal defender Jurrien, is keen to play Champions League football. He wouldn’t get that at West Ham, of course.
But he might at the Signal Iduna Park. Niko Kovac’s Dortmund side were ripped to shreds by their one-time talisman Erling Haaland last time out, but they remain well placed to qualify for the Champions League knock-out stages.
Die Schwarzgelben were in attendance to watch Timber’s Feyenoord lose 2-0 at Stuttgart in the Europa League last Thursday too.
“Borussia Dortmund is currently keeping a close eye on Quinten Timber,” Berger, who works for Sky Germany, writes on X.
“Dortmund representatives were on site for Stuttgart vs Feyenoord. Scouting is reportedly in its final stages. However, there has been no contact with the player’s side yet. It’s also still unclear whether Dortmund will make a move for Timber.”
Berger adds that Dortmund plan to move on Salih Ozcan and potentially former Brighton playmaker Pascal Gross too.
“Ozcan is expected to leave in the summer, and Gross is also a candidate for departure. A new midfielder is set to arrive.
“Feyenoord are desperate to extend Timber’s contract. His deal is up at the end of the season.”
Nuno Espirito Santo ‘wanted’ Timber at Nottingham Forest
Dutch icon Rafael van der Vaart tipped Timber to reach the ‘absolute top’ a few months ago. Most effective on the left-hand side of a midfield duo – another similarity with West Ham’s own Mateus Fernandes – Timber was part of the Arne Slot side which secured the Eredivisie title in 2023.
“There will be plenty of interest from elsewhere and Timber believes he should be playing Champions League football,” that source told Hammers News. “But Nuno likes him and wanted him at Forest so it makes sense.
“There’s a feeling he could be the missing piece for the manager.”
Chief football correspondent Graeme Bailey revealed last week that West Ham like PSV Eindhoven’s Ismael Saibari, too.