James Corden’s Mateus Fernandes comparison to PSG’s Vitinha isn’t outlandish claim for West Ham star
James Corden believes West Ham United star Mateus Fernandes reminds him of Paris Saint-Germain’s Vitinha, and he’s actually pretty spot on.
Signed from Southampton last summer, Fernandes has been one of West Ham’s brightest stars this season.
The 21-year-old is one of the most exciting young central midfielders in the Premier League at the moment, and has enjoyed a stellar 2025-26 campaign with three goals and three assists from 34 league outings.
As such, there is already significant transfer talk building around the Portuguese international, as his quality and potential look set to rob West Ham of a long-term future with him in their ranks.
So, West Ham’s final two games of the season look set to be his final outings in a Hammers shirt, as London Stadium chiefs brace themselves for offers.
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What has James Corden said about Mateus Fernandes & Vitinha?
Fernandes is reportedly going to leave West Ham regardless of what division the Hammers are plying their trade in next season.
Paris Saint-Germain are reported to be one of his potential suitors, whilst the likes of Manchester United and other top clubs across Europe have also been credited with an interest.
| Mateus Fernandes fact file | Answer |
| Full name | Mateus Goncalo Espanha Fernandes |
| Date of birth | 10 July, 2004 |
| Place of birth | Olhao, Portugal |
Fernandes is expected to go far and enjoy a successful career in the game, but just how high he might go and how high his ceiling reaches is a hot topic of debate.
Speaking to talkSPORT this week, Corden, a well-known West Ham supporter, believes that Fernandes is destined to go right to the very top, and has even compared him to PSG’s Vitinha, who came third in 2025’s Ballon d’Or voting.
“Fernandes, I think he’s an extraordinary footballer,” Corden said. “I think he will go to a [top] team.
“He reminds me a bit of Vitinha in PSG, who was at Wolves – Wolves fans knew how good he was, and no one else really took any notice.
“Now he’s at PSG, and we’re like, ‘he’s amazing’. I think Fernandes has that sort of ability.”
How do Fernandes and Vitinha compare?
On the face of it, comparing Fernandes to an established star midfielder like Vitinha may look as though Corden is perhaps getting ahead of himself with such a comparison.
However, when you peel back the curtain and delve into their respective underlying numbers, you realise that it’s not actually a wild statement to make at all.
As per FotMob, Vitinha has an expected goals (xG) of 1.00 in Ligue 1 this season, whilst also registering and expected assists of 3.72 and has created 34 chances.
Fernandes has an xG of 1.85 in the Premier League this term, with an expected assists of 2.70 and the exact same number of chances created as Vitinha, 34.
Vitinha has taken 22 shots whilst Fernandes has attempted 15, the PSG man has a 45 per cent shot accuracy compared to the West Ham star’s 40 per cent.
Fernandes has 0.89 successful dribbles per 90 compared to Vitinha’s 0.53, whilst the former has 1.01 clearances per 90 compared to the latter’s 0.96.
They’re also close for duel win rates too, with Vitinha winning 60 per cent of his whilst Fernandes has a 55.8 per cent win rate respectively.
So, the two central midfielders are actually very close to one another in a number of key midfield metrics, with Fernandes even surpassing Vitinha in some areas too.