West Ham United beat Tottenham to deal for Tim Steidten with behind-the-scenes agreement clinched
The Daily Mail has reported that West Ham are set to announce the appointment of Tim Steidten as the club’s new technical director.
The 14 June report states that a deal was agreed with former Bayer Leverkusen chief Steidten prior to the club’s UEFA Conference League victory.
The appointment comes amid a planned restructuring at the club with Paul Mitchell and Brentford’s Lee Dykes both also considered for the role.
However, West Ham have settled on the 44-year-old who is set to work alongside the club’s sporting director, legendary captain Mark Noble.
Once a professional player in German’s lower leagues, Steidten began his off-field career in football as a scout for Werder Bremen in 2008 before eventually landing a role as head of scouting at Leverkusen in 2019 – a role he then left in mid-March.
Last month it was reported that Tottenham were also interested in Steidten’s services as they continue their hunt for a new sporting director following the dismissal of Fabio Paratrici.
Superb appointment
It is an exciting time to be a West Ham fan. The club secured their first major trophy in over four decades last week and will now play Europa League football next season.
And if that isn’t enough to get excited by, this reported appointment shows the club is demonstrating some real ambition, and beating Spurs off the pitch to a club target will just make the victory even sweeter.
Steidten is a respected scout and will bring a fresh vision to the Hammers. His track record speaks for itself, with the German being credited for the discovery of young talent at Leverkusen such as Edmon Tapsoba, Jeremie Frimpong and Piero Hincapie.
This new set-up will allow for more hands on deck in the boardroom as the club looks to build on last season’s European success and push on in the right direction. Many West Ham fans will now be eager for next season to get going.