The mood around West Ham United at the moment is not a great one.
After finishing last season just five points above the Premier League relegation zone, there was hope from fans that the club would go big this summer.
However, while the likes of El Hadji Malick Diouf, Kyle Walker-Peters and Mads Hermansen are good players, they simply aren't enough on their own, and as things stand, it does not look like Mateus Fernandes will be making his way to the London Stadium anytime soon.
mateus-fernandes
However, it's not all doom and gloom, as the Hammers are now being linked with an international ace who could be an upgrade on Fernandes.
West Ham target Fernandes upgrade
With Edson Alvarez now moving to Fenerbahçe on a season-long loan, the Hammers' need for midfield reinforcements has become all the more pressing.
It looked like Fernandes would be the player to come in and help rejuvenate the middle of the park, but with Southampton rejecting the club's first offer and demanding in excess of £50m, the transfer now feels dead in the water.
Fortunately, it now looks like the East Londoners are eyeing a move for another midfield talent, someone who'd be an upgrade on the Portuguese ace.
Fulham's Ryan Sessegnon in action with Southampton's Mateus Fernandes
Fulham's Ryan Sessegnon in action with Southampton's Mateus Fernandes
At least that is according to a recent report from Jacob Steinberg, who has revealed that West Ham are now looking at Quinten Timber.
Steinberg does not mention how much the Feyenoord captain might cost, but reports from earlier this summer claimed that an offer of around £25m could be enough to seal the deal.
While that is still a sizeable sum of money, it may well prove to be good value for the Dutch international, especially as he would be an upgrade on Fernandes.
How Timber compares to Fernandes
The first big advantage to signing Timber over Fernandes is his positional versatility.
quinten-timber-feyenoord-eredivisie
Quinten Timber in action for Feyenoord.
While the Southampton star can play in a few midfield positions, the Dutchman is far more versatile and, as well as central, attacking and defensive midfield, has played off the right and left as well as in the defence.
Moreover, the Feyenoord star has far more experience than the former Sporting CP star. As well as captaining the Dutch giants, he has made 105 appearances for them, 33 for Utrecht, and won five senior caps for the Netherlands.
In contrast, the Saints gem has made just 45 appearances for the South Coast side, 35 for Estoril, ten for Sporting and is yet to win a single senior cap.
Moving on to what really matters for the fans, their output, and this is another area in which the former Ajax prospect comes out on top.
Quinten Timber
For example, in his 26 appearances last season, totalling 2054 minutes, the "extraordinary" midfielder, as dubbed by Mikel Arteta, scored six goals and provided one assist, which comes out to an average of a goal involvement every 3.71 games, or every 293.42 minutes.
For his efforts, the Olhão-born ace scored three goals and provided six assists in 44 appearances, totalling 3409 minutes, which comes out to an average of a goal involvement every 4.88 games, or every 378.77 minutes.
Finally, if you still need convincing, then taking a look under the hood, at their underlying numbers should do the trick, as the Feyenoord star comes out way ahead for most relevant metrics.
These include things like non-penalty goals plus assists, shot and goal-creating actions, key passes, passes into the final third and penalty area, tackles won and more, all per 90.
Timber vs Fernandes
Statistics per 90
Non-Penalty Goals + Assists
Progressive Passes
Progressive Carries
Shots
Shots on Target
Passing Accuracy
Key Passes
Passes into the Final Third
Passes into the Penalty Area
Expected Assists
Shot-Creating Actions
Goal-Creating Actions
Tackles Won
Blocks
Successful Take-Ons
Aerial Duels Won
All Stats via FBref for the 24/25 League Season
In other words, the 24-year-old is a midfielder who is just as comfortable creating and scoring goals as he is breaking up play.
Ultimately, Fernandes looks to be a very talented midfielder, but in every way from the price to his experience and the numbers he puts up, Timber would be the better signing for West Ham.