How Noussair Mazraoui to West Ham could prevent Man Utd solving their €100m conundrum | OneFootball

West Ham have reached an agreement with Bayern Munich for the transfer of Moroccan full-back Noussair Mazraoui.

If the transfer is completed, West Ham will pay an initial £13.47m for the 26-year-old, with the potential for an additional £2.95m in add-ons.

Discussions regarding personal terms are underway for Mazraoui, who has been linked with several clubs this summer, including Manchester United.

A move to Old Trafford would see Mazraoui, who came through Ajax’s esteemed youth setup, reunite with former boss Erik ten Hag and Antony, with whom he’s forged a telepathic understanding. It’s the rekindling of that successful partnership down United’s right flank that, according to reports, Ten Hag wants to recreate to unlock Antony’s potential.

Mazraoui and Antony played 47 games together during their time at Ajax. Antony managed 13 goals and eight assists when they shared the pitch, while Mazraoui chipped in with three and four of his own. However, they provided one goal contribution: Antony assisted by Mazraoui in Ajax’s 5-0 rout of Vitesse in September 2021.

But they will need to move quickly to also have Mazraoui share the pitch once more with former Amsterdammer teammates André Onana and Lisandro Martínez.

It was in Amsterdam where Mazraoui made his name as a marauding full-back. Though curiously, like Trent Alexander-Arnold, the native of Leiderdorp was raised as a midfielder and made his first-team debut there — albeit a one-minute cameo against NAC Breda at home in February 2018 — and the subsequent five Eredivisie appearances before Ten Hag had other ideas.

Taking a page from Pep Guardiola’s playbook, whom Ten Hag shadowed as Bayern Munich’s reserve-team coach, Mazraoui started at right back in a 3–0 win over AZ in April 2018 and he has never looked back since.

Throughout the following 2018/19 season, Mazraoui was De Godenzonen’s first-choice right-back in Ten Hag’s fluid 4-2-3-1 formation, with his breakthrough moment coming away to Bayern in a Champions League group stage match. It was a game that showcased the potential brilliance of this particular Ajax side; trailing Germany’s finest, Mazraoui displayed his keen eye for goal by equalising, striking a sweet left-footed shot from distance.

However, niggling injuries led to a substantial dip in form, and the emergence of Sergiño Dest put Mazraoui on the back foot, with some observers questioning his future in the Dutch capital. But Mazraoui’s former understudy and rival for the right-back berth jumped ship instead. Dest followed Frenkie de Jong to Barcelona, allowing Mazraoui some breathing room to regain the previous form that lit up Ajax’s first double-winning campaign under Ten Hag’s leadership.

His education with Ajax enhanced a versatility that many European clubs would value. He would feature in six positions, ranging from his familiar right-back berth to outings on the left wing as a forward. As for his original position, he’s sat a few times in the traditional No.8 role and even more so as a No.6 anchoring the midfield.

Bayern would ultimately secure his signature in July 2022, shortly after he entered free agency. It has not been an easy spell: injuries and stiff competition for places led to 55 appearances in all competitions (one goal and eight assists). Under a brief tenure with Julian Nagelsmann, he was utilized predominantly in a now-familiar right-back role, though on some occasions, he was pushed further up as a wing-back. The arrival of Thomas Tuchel saw that ‘adaptability’ side of him unleashed. He would feature at left-back and centre-back.

A 28-time international with Morocco, it’s also worth noting that he enjoyed time at Ajax with Mohammed Kudus and Edson Álvarez, who relocated to West Ham last summer and contributed significantly, thus becoming instant fan favourites.