Credit: Sky Sports and Imago

Daniel Lewis

Wed 6 May 2026 13:10, UK Updated Wed 6 May 2026 13:37, UK

West Ham United midfielder Mateus Fernandes has once again been touted as a target for Manchester United, with Jamie O’Hara sharing his instant thoughts.

Fernandes has impressed in his maiden campaign at the London Stadium, having arrived from Southampton last summer in a £38million deal rising to £42m.

That was considered a gamble of sorts, but Fernandes’ form was rewarded with a maiden Portugal senior cap this season.

Fellow Premier League sides are inevitably being linked with Fernandes as a result, with Champions League-bound Manchester United among them.

And ahead of the summer window opening, former Tottenham midfielder O’Hara has shared his verdict on the speculation.

Jamie O’Hara a fan of Mateus Fernandes

Sky Sports have reported that Fernandes, plus Bournemouth duo Alex Scott and Tyler Adams, are all on Man United’s list of targets.

It was added that these are not top-tier targets for the Red Devils, but rather names from the tier down as they look to strengthen their squad.

O’Hara was asked for his instant thoughts on the news while he was speaking on Sky Sports News on Wednesday morning.

“I like Fernandes,” O’Hara said. “He’s a really good player. I’d expect United to go and get Elliot Anderson, or spend £100m on a midfielder who can take you to the next level.

“But I get they have to strengthen the squad with lots of games next season.”

If Man United were to pursue Fernandes, the fee would be an increase on what West Ham paid to sign him 12 months ago.

That will be the case, you would hope, even if the Hammers are relegated, as that was what happened 12 months ago when he went down with Southampton.

Could West Ham already have Fernandes replacement plan in place?

The great difficulty for West Ham right now is that they cannot plan ahead for next season as they do not know what division they will be in.

Nuno Espirito Santo has just one task on his hands and that is to keep West Ham up. Only then can the board begin to work on bringing in players.

But certain names are already appearing in the gossip columns, one of those being Leicester City ace Jordan James.

As exclusively revealed by West Ham Zone, Jordan James is a target for West Ham this summer after impressing for relegated Leicester this campaign.

The Wales international will return to parent club Rennes, but it looks likely he will be heading back to British shores before next season.

If West Ham do go down and Fernandes moves on, as is extremely likely, then James seems as good a replacement as any while working on a tight budget.