West Ham almost signed wonderkid for £12m, now he’s scored 366 career goals
West Ham had an incredibly busy transfer window, signing eight first team players.
Despite this, they also missed out on several talents throughout the summer, with Graham Potter looking to make more signings as pressure started to mount on the West Ham manager.
Axel Disasi’s failed move to West Ham was disappointing, whilst reports claimed that West Ham were also interested in Fenerbahce’s Jayden Oosterwolde.
Fabio Vieira’s transfer to West Ham also fell through, with the Portuguese midfielder opting for a move to the Bundesliga.
But in 2010, West Ham missed out on signing one of the greatest players ever.
West Ham almost signed Neymar for £12m in 2010
West Ham made a £12m bid for Neymar in 2010, as relayed by The Sun.
Neymar, who was just 18-years-old and playing for Brazilian side Santos at the time, was also gaining interest from Chelsea and Manchester City.
Club director Pedro Luiz Nunes confirmed this as he said: “We received an offer from West Ham for Neymar, worth €15m.”
Santos’ stance was to not accept anything that was less than his £28.4m release clause.
Neymar eventually left his hometown club three years after West Ham’s official bid, joining Barcelona instead.
Neymar’s career after nearly joining West Ham
It’s fair to say that Neymar’s career benefited from the fact that he didn’t join West Ham.
The legendary winger went on to become one of the best players in the world, as he won many trophies during his four-year spell at Barcelona.
The 2015 Champions League win was probably the greatest achievement of his career, linking up with Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez to form the devastating ‘MSN’ frontline.
A move to Paris Saint-Germain in 2017 was perhaps unexpected, but the Brazilian would continue his ridiculous scoring exploits in France.
| Team | Appearances | Goals |
| Santos (2009 – 2013) | 220 | 134 |
| Barcelona (2013 – 2017) | 186 | 105 |
| Paris Saint-Germain (2017 – 2023) | 173 | 118 |
| Al Hilal (2023 – 2025) | 7 | 1 |
| Santos (2025 – now) | 20 | 6 |
Injuries played a key role in the latter stages of Neymar’s career, as a move to Saudi Arabian side Al Hilal was not a huge success.
Now, Neymar has returned to boyhood club Santos, as he helps them fight off the threat of relegation.
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