In the wake of Andy Carrollโs season-ending knee surgery, West Ham have acquired the services of Brazilian forward Nene on a free transfer until the end of the campaign. The 33-year-old, who last played for Qatari side Al-Gharafa, expressed his delight at joining a big club in footballโs most competitive league while also revealing a penchant for taking free-kicks:
โI’ve been thinking about coming back to Europe for a few months because here the football, the ambience, everything is better. It’s a really good challenge for me, to come to a competition like the Premier League. It’s the most competitive in the world so this is the motivation for me. I like to get on the ball and show my technique. I like taking free-kicks, so practice to be good at that. I like making assists – that is my real work, to make the final pass to put the striker in a good position to score the goals. โ
The History
Nene cut his teeth in indoor football from an early age, earning his first big break at the age of 15 when he joined the youth academy at Brazil Serie A outfit Bahia. Subsequent one-year stints at the Sporting Lisbon and Corinthians academies prompted Sao Paulo-based fourth-tier side Paulista to offer the 18-year-old his first professional contract.
After scoring 26 goals in 32 outings for his hometown club, Nene caught the attention of top-flight team Palmerias, where he stayed for one term (five goals in 24 appearances) before making the switch to Santos.
Neneโs displays in Brazil courted attention from across the Atlantic, prompting Mallorca to snap up the winger on a one-year loan deal. Segunda Division side Alaves then recruited Nene when his temporary deal expired, earning promotion to La Liga in his first season at the Basque club. Three years at Alaves saw the free-kick specialist notch 21 goals in 78 outings, which proved justification enough for Celta Viga to sign Nene in an estimated ยฃ3.5 million deal.
Following Celta Vigoโs relegation, Nene sealed a move to AS Monaco. Aside from a loan spell at Espanyol in the 2008-09 season, he would ply his trade in Ligue 1 for the next six years, including a three-year spell at Paris Saint-Germain โ the Jundiai native excelled in their 2011-12 campaign, finishing as the leagueโs joint-top scorer (21) alongside Montpellierโs Olivier Giroud.
Neneโs switch to Upton Park arrives off the back of two years at Al-Gharafa, where he netted 21 times in 44 outings and lead the teamโs scoring charts.
The Prospects
West Hamโs decision to snap up the free agent is no doubt a reaction to Andy Carroll being ruled out for the remainder of the campaign. Although manager Sam Allardyce can still call upon the services of Diafra Sakho, Enner Valencia and Carlton Cole in their forward line, the Irons transfer committee clearly surmised that their recent record of one goal in three matches needed addressing, though reports suggesting that the move is against Allardyceโs wishes is hardly the greatest of starts.
While Nene is primarily a wide forward, he is versatile enough to operate in a central role. Allardyce has experimented with different formations in recent weeks โ fielding Sakho and Valencia as a front two against Manchester United and West Brom, while deploying Cole as the lone striker at Southampton, with the former pair on either side in a 4-3-3 set-up. Certainly, Neneโs skill set would likely be more suited to the latter system, allowing him to provide width and utilise his lauded crossing ability, as it remains to be seen whether Allardyce will view him as a viable option up front.
Certainly, Neneโs classification in Fantasy Premier League (FPL) will be intriguing. If listed as a midfielder, he could offer us an out of position option if he can convince Allardyce of his worth through the middle. If listed as a forward and subsequently fielded on the flank, though, heโs unlikely to oust Stewart Downing as the Hammersโ most popular asset. In saying that, he could be set to take a share of dead-ball duties off Downing โ hardly ideal for the latterโs owners, given heโs managed a mere goal and assist in the last eight Gameweeks.
Providing he receives international clearance in time, the former PSG wide man could make his debut in this weekendโs derby against Tottenham, which marks the first of four consecutive London match-ups for the Hammers (tot, cry, CHE, ars). In all likelihood, such an unforgiving run could well dissuade potential investors from transferring in the South American until West Hamโs fixtures clear up from Gameweek 30 onwards โ by then, we should get a better idea of just where he stands in Big Samโs thoughts.
