Ex-Man Utd striker Michael Owen has backed his former club’s attempts to buy West Ham midfielder Mateus Fernandes.
The Times have reported that the Red Devils are now favourites to “beat Arsenal” and other clubs to the signature of the Portuguese international. Asked whether he thinks Fernandes would be a good addition to Michael Carrick’s squad, Owen said:
“I thought he was brilliant last season. I watched him a lot; I think he’s a very good pick. He’s reasonably young, which is another massive tick. If you’re going to be spending 80 to 100 million, then you don’t want to be buying someone that’s in their late 20s.”
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“I could see him and Kobbie Mainoo forming a great partnership in there, and the other thing is he should be gettable. West Ham have gone into the Championship, and he’s not going to want to be playing in the Championship so I mean I would think that he’s very gettable and I think he’s very good. I personally would be making him my first choice.”
Fernandes stood out in a poor team
Some may say that signing a player who has been relegated twice in the last two seasons isn’t particularly smart.
However, Fernandes was one of the few bright lights in a pretty bad West Ham team. He was one of their consistent performers despite difficult circumstances.
Of course, you could still argue that one good campaign doesn’t justify the sizeable outlay it would take to bring him in, but there are other factors to take into consideration.
He could be part of Man Utd’s midfield for the next decade
As Owen rightly points out, the player’s age is a major plus. He only turns 22 next month, so he could well be a mainstay in the starting eleven for 10 years or even more.
In that context, paying £80m doesn’t seem like a huge amount of money, especially if the figure is paid in instalments over several seasons.
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