West Ham have beaten Manchester United to the signing of Noussair Mazraoui after agreeing an initial fee of £13.5m with Bayern Munich for the Morocco full-back, according to a report.
The fee could rise to almost £16.5m, Sky Sport Germany has said, adding that the 26-year-old is in talks over personal terms.
Widespread reports said Manchester United had been keen to sign Mazraoui in a deal which would have reunited him with Erik ten Hag, his manager during his time at Dutch giants Ajax.
🚨⚒️ EXCL | FC Bayern and West Ham have reached an agreement to sign Noussair #Mazraoui!
▫️Transfer fee: €15,5 + €4m add-ons
▫️There’s also a verbal agreement in principle between #WHUFC and Mazraoui …But it’s not a done deal yet as important financial details about the… pic.twitter.com/cCjSqPkkiA
— Florian Plettenberg (@Plettigoal) July 25, 2024
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Man United ‘wanted Mazraoui transfer’
News of Mazraoui’s potential switch to West Ham comes less than 24 hours after he was linked with United.
The Guardian reported on Wednesday that Ten Hag saw the right-back as a player capable of transforming winger Antony’s fortunes, although the outlet added that the move would depend on the sale of Aaron Wan-Bissaka for around £21m.
Antony remains United’s second-most expensive signing of all time but has failed to live up to the £86m fee Ten Hag paid Ajax for the Brazil international in August 2022, scoring one Premier League goal last season.
Mazraoui Bayern stats
Born in the Netherlands, Mazraoui joined Ajax’s academy as a child and made his debut for the Amsterdammers in 2018.
He helped Ten Hag win the Eredivisie three times between 2019 and 2022 as part of a haul of six trophies, as well as taking the club’s Talent of the Year award in his first campaign and Goal of the Season honour for 2021/22.
A move to Bayern on a free transfer followed in May 2022, scoring once and providing eight assists in 55 appearances for Germany’s most successful side.
A vital player in the Morocco team who reached the 2022 Fifa World Cup semi-finals, his attacking style has been likened to England international Trent Alexander-Arnold.
Mazraoui is even more versatile than the Liverpool wideman, being deployed on both flanks as well as in midfield.
“Noussair is a player who presses forward a lot down the right side,” then-Bayern sporting director Hasan Salihamidzic said when the signing was announced. “We also really like his mentality.”
