'Just landed' - Brazilian hotshot arrives at West Ham ahead of £26m transfer

Brazilian hotshot Luis Guilherme has arrived in the UK to complete his West Ham medical ahead of a reported £25.5 million switch from Brazilian outfit Palmeiras.

New Hammers boss Julen Lopetegui appears to be on the verge of completing his first major transfer coup since arriving at the London Stadium last month with the 18-year-old winger close to sealing a deal with West Ham. The club's director of football Tim Steiden is known to have been in Brazil working on the deal to help bolster the Lopetegui squad.

The former Wolves boss has taken over at the London club following the departure of David Moyes at the end of the season. His previous role in the Midlands came to an end just under a year ago due to frustration over transfer dealings.

Reporting on the progress of the deal, transfer guru Fabrizio Romano took to social media platform X on Monday to say: "Brazilian talent Luis Guilherme has just landed in London in order to complete medical tests and [sic] sign in as new West Ham player."

The speedy winger cites Argentinian legend Lionel Messi as an inspiration and was named as one of the best players in the world for his age by The Guardian in October 2023. He has already been capped by the Brazilian under-20 side.

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In that feature last year, the Guardian wrote: "Football is a simple sport for Luis Guilherme. A midfielder with refined technique, speed and excellent finishing, he is gaining more and more admirers every day.

"Guilherme has been at Palmeiras since 2017, when he was 11 years old, and is considered one of the next jewels in Brazil’s football crown, alongside Endrick. Some even believe he will have an even brighter future than his club teammate. Palmeiras already know that he will leave at some point, it is only a question of when and to which club."