West Ham set to appoint Tim Steidten as technical director
West Ham are expected to confirm the appointment of Tim Steidten as the club's new technical director in the coming days, 90min understands.
The Hammers have undertaken an exhaustive and thorough process to find the right candidate to assume responsibility of the club's transfer dealings, which have been overseen by manager David Moyes and head of recruitment Rob Newman.
90min reported in May that majority owner David Sullivan had made his dissatisfaction known over the club's performances last season, even though West Ham went on to end their 43-year trophy drought by winning the Europa Conference League final against Fiorentina.
Roma sporting director Tiago Pinto, Brentford's Lee Dykes, Benfica's Rui Pedro Braz and Aston Villa's Johan Lange were all under consideration for the role, but sources have confirmed to 90min that a deal to appoint former Bayer Leverkusen sporting director Steidten has now been agreed.
His arrival at London Stadium is expected to be made official in the coming days, and his arrival will see Mark Noble transition into a slight variation of his current role.
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Steidten previously held talks with Chelsea last year over a similar position and his primary focus will be to help West Ham identify suitable replacements for outgoing captain Declan Rice.
The 24-year-old is at the centre of a transfer tug of war involving Arsenal, Manchester United and Manchester City, with the former having already seen two bids rejected by West Ham. The club are standing firm in their valuation of Rice - which they hope will pocket £120m with add-ons included - but anticipate an interested party will eventually stump up a suitable offer.
90min understands that Fulham's Joao Palhinha, Manchester City's Kalvin Phillips and Manchester United's Scott McTominay are already on the club's shopping list, with Steidten likely to provide his input before any bids are officially put in.
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On this week's edition of Talking Transfers, part of the 90min podcast network, Toby Cudworth is joined by Graeme Bailey and Sean Walsh to discuss the latest transfer news. On the agenda is Arsenal's approach for Jurrien Timber, Kai Havertz and Declan Rice, the exodus of Chelsea players to Saudi Arabia, Moises Caicedo, Kyle Walker, Man Utd's goalkeeper plans & more!
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