West Ham United ended up beating the likes of Newcastle to the signing of Max Kilman this summer.
Max Kilman left Wolves to join West Ham in a £40 million deal on Saturday, after Newcastle previously tried to bring him to St James’ Park.
I have no doubts that the centre-back will be a brilliant signing for us, and he comes with the added bonus of counting as a homegrown player as well.
After West Ham conceded 74 Premier League goals last season, the addition of a top-class central defender would have been the main priority for Lopetegui.
With the signing of Kilman, the Hammers boss has made sure that his side will head into the new season in much better shape defensively than we did last term.
The addition of the 27-year-old was a vital one for us, and the way in which it came about was hugely significant as well.
Nobody seems to be even talking about one specific facet of the deal to bring Kilman to the London Stadium…
Incredibly exciting thing about West Ham deal to sign Max Kilman
The Hammers fans should be absolutely delighted that Lopetegui managed to bring the 6ft 4in defender to the London Stadium this summer.
The West Ham boss has addressed a key weakness in his squad, and Kilman will drastically improve us overnight.
However, things could have been so different.
On paper, Newcastle surely would have been favourites to win the race for Kilman, due to their far superior spending power.
The Toon were said to be very keen to sign Kilman this summer (talkSPORT), but the Hammers won the race for the 27-year-old in the end.
Let’s not forget here, Newcastle are a club with genuine ambition to finish inside the top four and to secure Champions League football once again.
So the fact that West Ham won the race to sign Kilman proves to me just how much pull we have in the game.
A 62,500 seater stadium based in the heart of London certainly helps, but I believe we’re a sleeping giant as well.
Players must look at West Ham as a club with huge potential, and Max Kilman is someone who clearly believes that he can achieve great things with us.
The former Maidenhead ace will undoubtedly be a pivotal player for us over the next five years or so.
His former Wolves teammate Conor Coady once described him as ‘outstanding’ when speaking to their official website, and he’s spot on.
I cannot wait to see him in action for us. The signing of Kilman was a hugely important one for Lopetegui, and it cements our current standing in the game as one of the most attractive clubs to join as well.
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