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West Ham remain in talks over a deal to sign Sao Paulo defender Luizao and are continuing to push despite a potential work permit issue, The West Ham Way reports.
A move for the 20-year-old defender has been in the offing for some time now and the Hammers are pressing on in an attempt to beat Fulham, who are “very keen”, among others to his signature.
With the youngster having made only 14 appearances in Brazil’s Serie A, there may be issues with completing a deal from a regulatory standpoint however.
The latest report says: “A work permit would also need to be obtained and that could potentially be a stumbling block on the potential deal, although West Ham are continuing to push ahead in the hope that an agreement can get over the line.”
Rob Newman and the recruitment team have reportedly been scouting players in Brazil recently and the centre-back has caught their eye.
ExWHUemployee has also confirmed that a deal will require compensation to be paid to Sao Paulo despite the player’s contract coming to an end.
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Tricky
West Ham don’t like to make their transfer negotiations straight forward, and while it would seem that the club are well positioned in negotiations with Luizao himself, the UK government are a different matter.
A work permit sounds like it could be tough to come by for a young player who hasn’t featured extensively for his club yet, and is not an international.
Premier League sides have signed such players in the past, before loaning them out for multiple seasons to teams in Europe until they were eligible to play in England.
But Brexit has likely put a road block in the way of that route as well, while Premier League loan rules are being made tighter by the year currently so it will now become a tougher decision as to who will be used for limited slots.
The Irons must believe they are in with a chance of securing a player they can actually use though, otherwise they presumably would not be putting so much effort into the deal.
The centre-back position is one that has been in a state of constant change over the past couple of seasons and the potential departure of Craig Dawson remains a consideration, so it looks like West Ham are attempting to fill that gap as soon as possible with the Brazilian if they can.