Who will be the first West Ham signing of the summer transfer window, Palmeiras forward Luis Guilherme (whom we covered just now, here), or Flamengo central defender Fabricio Bruno (whom we covered a few days ago).
We have another update on Bruno now, whom we thought was at “Here we go” time.
Just last week, it looked and sounded like Bruno was going to become the first signing of the Julen Lopetegui era in east London.
The fee of £12.5m plus £2.5m in add-ons had been agreed, so all that was left was the medical and paperwork.
Not to be…as this deal is now on pause, due to a dispute over salary.
Bruno, a 28-year-old Brazilian international, has asked for a £100,000-a-week contract, according to HITC.
If that sounds a bit exorbitant, at least for a player of this stature, well that’s because it kind of is.
Bumping up Bruno’s wages to that level would make one of the highest earners at the club, and place him well ahead of guys like Jarrod Bowen and Mohamed Kudus.
Maybe this is just a negotiating tactic, to get a higher salary, just one quite this high. In sales circles, this is known as the “door-in-the-face” technique, because you first present something egregious (i.e. it would proverbially result with the door getting slammed in your face).
Then you present the more reasonable offer, which is what you actually wanted the whole time. So it could be that, and this deal will get over the line.
Or it’s just off, and not gonna happen, because West Ham simply won’t pay a center back, or at least a center back named Fabricio Bruno that much money for an entire season.
Paul M. Banks is the Founding Editor of The Sports Bank. He’s also the author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” and “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”
He currently contributes to Ravens Wire, part of the USA Today SMG’s NFL Wire Network and the Internet Baseball Writers Association of America. His past bylines include the New York Daily News, Sports Illustrated, Chicago Tribune and the Washington Times. You can follow him on Linked In and Twitter.