West Ham United's recruitment drive has stalled. Fabrizio Bruno has raised his asking price.
“Bruno's move to West Ham is now off the table,” German Sky Sports reporter Florian Platenberg said on Tuesday (ET). A verbal agreement has been reached, but Saudi Arabian clubs have shown concrete interest."
West Ham changed managers at the end of this season. David Moyes, who led the club during its heyday, left when his contract expired and was replaced by Julen Lopetegui. With a new manager at the helm, the Hammers went on a recruitment spree and tried to sign Bruno.
Bruno is a Brazilian center back. Born in 1996, the 28-year-old is considered one of the best defenders in his native Brazil. He started his professional career with Cruzeiro, where he made 30 appearances in three years. In 2020, he moved to Red Bull Bragançinho.
Since moving to Bragançinho, he has become the first-choice center back. In the 2020 season, Bruno made 21 appearances, and in the 2021 season, he made a whopping 57 appearances. In 2022, Bruno donned the colors of Brazilian giants Flamengo.
Bruno has developed into one of Flamengo's best defenders. In 2022, he played 28 games with two goals and one assist, helping Flamengo win the Copa do Brasil and CONMEBOL Libertadores. In 2023, he made 62 appearances, playing a 토토사이트 central role in the defense.
He also recently earned a call-up to the Brazilian national team. In March 2024, he was called up to the A-Match roster as a substitute when Marcinho was ruled out due to injury. In the friendly against England, he was named in the starting lineup and made his A-Match debut.
This season, Bruno has started all six matches and played the full time in all of them, leading Flamengo's rise to the top of the table. Flamengo lead the league with four wins, two draws, one loss, and 14 points after seven rounds.
Bruno has a chance to qualify for Europe at some point this season. The move was almost certain to happen when West Ham submitted a €13.5 million bid to Flamengo. European soccer transfer market expert Fabrizio Romano confirmed this.
However, the deal is currently stalled. This is because Bruno demanded a higher salary from West Ham. According to Platenberg, Bruno, who had an offer from a Saudi Arabian club, demanded a new salary from West Ham.
West Ham refused and reportedly informed the players and management that they didn't want to meet the player's demands.
