MOYES FEARS ENZO IS BACK TO HAUNT HIM
WEST HAM boss David Moyes is plotting how to stop the World Cup winner who got away.
Enzo Fernandez appeared on Moyes’ radar before the Argentina kid (above, right) exploded on the global scene in Qatar, leading to a record £107million move to Chelsea.
“I knew about him when he was at Benfica,” said the Scot (above, left), whose team host the big-spending Blues today.
“I spoke to the Benfica manager Roger Schmidt about him in November, who’d given him incredible praise about how good of a player he was.
“So he was on the radar. And the World Cup highlighted what his capabilities were.”
While the Hammers chief’s conversation with Schmidt was not an inquiry around the midfielder’s transfer availability – “not at that price, it wasn’t,” Moyes said – he came away from their chat aware that big clubs were already circling.
Now he will be hoping that Fernandez, 22, is still trying his feet in the Premier League as Chelsea search for their best XI after splashing out more than £300m last month to bring in eight new faces.
Predicting Blues boss Graham Potter’s starting line-up will be tricky. “We try to give the players the information we can about the opposition,” added Moyes.
“The players aren’t daft. They’ll have watched the World Cup, seen recent Premier League games.
“But it’s quite difficult with Chelsea because they have got so many new players in.
“They’ve also got a Champions League game on Wednesday and I wouldn’t know which order becomes more important.”
West Ham remain without injured trio Kurt Zouma, Gianluca Scamacca and Maxwel Cornet, while Thilo Kehrer is a doubt having strained a hamstring against Newcastle last Saturday.
But Moyes is seeing positive signs from a squad that underwent its own remake last summer.
He said: “We’ve actually gone three or four games where we have picked up some good results.
“There are signs we’re getting back into a little bit more rhythm, but that can change when you’re playing big opposition.
“I do feel that we’re beginning to settle and getting used to our new boys as well.”