When West Ham United completed the signing of Luis Guilherme from Palmeiras, the Hammers were shopping in what is surely the best showcase in Brazil these days.
This summer, the South American side are also seeing Endrick leave for Real Madrid, and have just completed the sale of Estêvão to Chelsea.
That makes it a hard situation for Palmeiras manager Abel Ferreira. The coach, quoted by Globo Esporte, now spoke to the Brazilian media and brought up his feelings about losing so many young talents from his squad.
“Do you know the difference between the real (Brazilian currency) and the euro or dollar? So… It’s difficult. We asked Leila not to sell Endrick, Estêvão, Luis Guilherme. But it’s impossible. We’re talking about very large sums. And my job is to find solutions. I think the Brazilian national team is the one that can really benefit from this in the medium and long term.
“Clubs from Europe want to come to Palmeiras to get players. I’ve already said publicly that several players have been sought after. If we accept all the offers that come our way, my assistants and I will start playing.
“I’ll go for centre-forward, which I’m fine with, and I’ll put Andrey on the right, Castanheira on the left, who is left-footed, and Martins and João, who are tall, in defence. I’ll get others up front. I understand the players, I understand the players’ agents.”
West Ham are reportedly buying Luis Guilherme for a total package worth €30m. That’s said to be €23m guaranteed plus €7m in bonuses.
Even though Real Madrid had to wait for Endrick to turn 18 and Chelsea will have to do the same with Estêvão, the Hammers were lucky enough to go for a target who can immediately play for them.
Luis Guilherme left Palmeiras with only one goal and one assist in 45 appearances, but showed great potential. Despite being mainly a winger, he can do a good job as a number 10 as well.
