West Ham announce £15m Aaron Wan-Bissaka signing for eighth summer transfer

Evening Standard

·13 August 2024

West Ham announce £15m Aaron Wan-Bissaka signing for eighth summer transfer

Julen Lopetegui rebuild continues

West Ham have continued their summer recruitment drive by announcing a £15million deal to sign Aaron Wan-Bissaka from Manchester United.

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The right-back has agreed a return to London five years after he left Crystal Palace for United for £50m. His move to West Ham has paved the way for United to sign Noussair Mazraoui and Matthijs de Ligt from Bayern Munich for a combined fee of more than £50m.

Wan-Bissaka, 26, was entering the final year of his contract at Old Trafford after United triggered a one-year extension to his deal. He’ll wear the No29 shirt in east London on a seven-year contract.

“It was a no brainer for me to join West Ham – I’m excited and happy to be here,” he told the club website.

“It’s an amazing feeling to be back in London, and I’m excited for what’s coming. I was born here, so I know the ins and outs of London, which plays a big part in my life, so to be back playing in this city means a lot to me.

“I’m happy to be here, am grateful for the warm welcome, and I am excited to be playing for the club and will give it my all.

“I can’t wait to get on the pitch, get to know the players, and push on from there. I see a team that is in it together, that will push each other to win, and a group that has got each others’ backs through thick and thin, so being part of that and having that insurance helps a lot when you are surrounded by a good squad."

West Ham

New West Ham boss Julen Lopetegui is rebuilding his backline and the Hammers have targeted Wan-Bissaka as a long-term replacement for 31-year-old Vladimir Coufal.

West Ham last week signed Nice centre-back Jean-Clair Todibo on loan with an option to sign him for £34.2m, and splashed out £40m to sign Max Kilman from Wolves earlier this summer.

Julen Lopetegui’s rebuild of the Hammers continues with his eighth addition of the summer transfer window, the bulk of which has focused on the defence, including the free transfers of goalkeeper Wes Foderingham and defensive midfielder Guido Rodriguez.

Niclas Fullkrug, Luis Guilherme and Crysencio Summerville have also signed as part of a £132m spree, which will rise if Todibo’s loan move is made permanent next year.

“I am delighted we’ve been able to get the deal to sign Aaron over the line,” said technical director Tim Steidten.

“He’s exactly the type of player we’re looking to attract to this club in the prime years of his career. He’s an incredibly talented defender who we rate very highly – superb in one-on-one situations. He’s versatile too, which is clearly another positive.

“He’s played over 170 Premier League games during his career – he knows the division inside-out. I’d like to personally thank the board for their continued backing to bring players of such quality to West Ham. It’s a really exciting time for us as we prepare for the start of the new season this weekend.”

The Hammers still hope to offload Kurt Zouma after his proposed move to Dubai-based club Shabab Al Ahli collapsed after issues with his medical. Zouma is still trying to secure a deal in the UAE, where other clubs are interested in him.