West Ham deal to take Potter ally from Chelsea raises more doubt over Steidten
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West Ham have finalised a deal with Chelsea to bring in Graham Potter’s trusted recruitment analyst Kyle Macaulay in a move that raises further doubts over Tim Steidten’s future as the technical director. Although Macaulay is not taking on a technical director role his arrival is regarded as another sign of significant change in West Ham’s recruitment department. Steidten, whose influence has been decreased this month, is under serious pressure because of his work in the transfer market and it is understood that the German’s position is being reviewed by the club’s hierarchy.
The analyst Max Hahn is understood to taken on a more prominent role this month and West Ham will soon benefit from Macaulay’s expertise. Macaulay worked with Potter at Östersund, Swansea, Brighton and Chelsea. He remained at Stamford Bridge after Potter was fired in April 2023. The expectation has long been that the pair would link up again.
Chelsea asked for £1.5m in compensation when West Ham, who appointed Potter as Julen Lopetegui’s replacement this month, approached them for Macaulay. The clubs have agreed to an incentivised deal after swift talks. It is hoped that Macaulay will begin work on Thursday. It is expected that his arrival will accelerate West Ham’s transfer plans, with Potter keen to recruit a defender, a deep-lying midfielder and a striker.
Striker targets include Fulham’s Rodrigo Muniz, RB Leipzig’s André Silva, Brighton’s Evan Ferguson and Nottingham Forest’s Taiwo Awoniyi. Sources have questioned the seriousness of an unsuccessful £57m bid for Aston Villa’s Jhon Durán. Sources close to Lille’s Angel Gomes have played down links with the England midfielder, whose contract expires this summer.
