Renowned South American football expert and journalist Tim Vickery believes Luis Guilherme can excite West Ham United supporters with his pace, physical presence and rocket of a left foot shot.
Vickery, who has been a respected commentator on the Brazilian game for over 15 years, spoke at length about the Hammers’ new signing from reigning Série A champions Palmeiras in a video interview with the West Ham Network YouTube channel.
The BBC, World Soccer and ESPN regular gave a detailed insight into how the 18-year-old could fit into Julen Lopetegui’s team, his strengths and, first, his potential, as he is not yet the finished product.
“As is obvious when you’re interested in someone who is 18 years of age, you are buying much more on promise than you are on reality, and the marker for so many of these deals is you are assuming, as Real Madrid did with Vinicius Junior,” Vickery told host Holly Worthington. “They couldn’t take him until he was 18, but they bought him when he was 16 and hadn’t played a senior game. They spent £40million on him and it seemed like madness, and it’s turned out to be an extraordinary bargain.
“That kind of deal has changed the market. European clubs always wanted the players young, but from the success of that deal, they want them at 18 if they can. It’s rare for players to get over the 22 or 23-mark, if they are still in South America, for European clubs to be interested. They want them as young as possible, which inevitably means we are talking about promise rather than reality.
“In the case of Luis Guilherme, Palmeiras have so much promise. Their youth work has been doing such remarkable stuff. Endrick is 18 who is just about to go to Real Madrid. They’ve got Estêvão who is 17 and who looks like he will join Chelsea in a year’s time. That means Luis Guilherme has been a little bit overshadowed, but he is very, very interesting.
“West Ham were said to be interested in another winger, Wesley, who plays across São Paulo at Corinthians. They’re very different, as Wesley is right footed and cuts in, and Luis Guilherme is left footed, but the thing that they have in common is that they’re not lightweights. These are physical. Luis Guilherme is physically built, lightning quick with a left foot.
“He hasn’t had that many opportunities to play. Palmeiras won the Brazilian Championship last year, so it’s not as though he’s come from a side who have not been struggling, so he’s had to take his opportunities where they’ve come. They have a very good young European coach, a Portuguese coach named Abel Ferreira, like a young version of José Mourinho, who thinks the world of him. He has played most of his football wide on the right, using that pace, but I think where Abel really thinks he is probably better is playing infield because he has got a kick like a mule.
“I think what the Palmeiras coach has trying to get out of him is that, rather than have him playing from the flanks, have him a little bit infield from the half-space cutting in, where he’s got more opportunity to bear down on goal.”
Vickery explained that, while Luis Guilherme has 40 senior appearances under his belt and has played for Brazil at Under-20 level, he is not yet the finished article, and has scope to improve under the guidance of Lopetegui and his coaches.
“It will be very much a case of West Ham developing him and developing him slowly,” Vickery observed. “You see, I don’t think this is a player who is going to go straight into the team and make an immediate impact. This is one you are building for the future.
“For a player operating in that position, there is a huge learning curve ahead, and that’ll be the case with Luis Guilherme.”
