Caught in the fog of West Ham’s frenzied transfer activity has been the club’s pursuit of Botafogo goalkeeper John Victor.
The Brazilian was heavily linked with a move to East London just days ago, when Fabrizio Romano revealed the Hammers’ interest. Things escalated quickly, with terms believed to have been agreed between both clubs and the player himself—Romano even gave it the obligatory “here we go”.
Earlier today, Botafogo coach Davide Ancelotti revealed that Victor had said his goodbyes to teammates, and the club had already signed his replacement. Until West Ham were suddenly announced as being close to agreeing a deal for Leicester City’s Mads Hermansen this afternoon, most believed that the 29-year-old Victor was en route to London to sign for the Hammers.
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Goalkeeper John Victor believes he is moving to West Ham
So what happens now?
Are the club planning to sign a second keeper and move on from both Alphonse Areola and Łukasz Fabiański?
Or—perhaps more cynically—has poor old Victor been used as a negotiating pawn to bring Hermansen’s price down and push the deal over the line?
I suppose the next few days will give us a definitive answer. Either West Ham are about to announce a second goalkeeper signing… or John Victor will be unpacking his bags and awkwardly reintegrating with his Botafogo teammates.