Having signed in the summer of 2018 for a club record fee, Felipe Anderson raised many eyebrows when he chose to ply his trade at the London Stadium.
Having been coveted by many of Europe’s elite, including the likes of Manchester United and Real Madrid, many punters across the globe were backing the Brazilian starlet to join one of the European big guns. A punter we recently spoke to mentioned he had used a free bet at online-betting.org to back the shortening odds of him playing in the red colours of Manchester. That never happened and, based on current form, the Hammers are glad it didn’t.
Anderson was always a star. Having won 4 trophies with Santos in Brazil, before he’d turned 20, it’s safe to say that winning is most certainly in his DNA. A move to Europe loomed, as he became one of the hottest properties in South America. Playing alongside the likes of Neymar only improved his game, and his impending move to Lazio was completed in 2013 for a fee of almost €8m.
Anderson scored 10 goals in just his second season at the club, earning him a contract extension which improved his fairly modest €800k per year salary. He finished with 9 goals that season, meaning he was Lazio’s second top goalscorer.
Two years later, in the summer of 2018, Felipe Anderson joined West Ham for a reported fee of €38m – a club record fee. After a fairly modest start, the Brazilian has sparkled in recent weeks – including netting a stunning double against Southampton only a week ago. After claims of him being too lightweight, he’s put on added muscle and has added strength to his game – something that compliments his outstanding pace very well. He is one of the most technically gifted players that the Hammers have witnessed in recent years, and his form in coming off of the left flank has been imperative in the turnaround of West Ham’s fortunes, after the early season inconsistencies under new boss, Pellegrini.
With 7 goals in his last 10 matches (at the time of writing), the gaffer has suggested that there is much more to come from the sparkling Brazilian. “He’s still learning in the Premier League” said Pellegrini after the victory over Southampton. One thing that the boss will be pleased with, is Anderson’s response to his calls for more effort in the defensive transitions of the game. His incredible energy and work-rate meant that this improvement was only ever likely to be a formality.
If Pellegrini is right, and there is more to come from him, then the future of Felipe Anderson looks very bright indeed.
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