West Ham United will “soon” finalise the appointment of Tim Steidten as their new technical director in the Premier League, according to journalist Fabrizio Romano.
Who is Tim Steidten?
Steidten is a former professional who played as a defensive midfielder until he retired in 2009, and he’s since gone on to have an experienced career behind-the-scenes. Starting at Werder Bremen, the 44-year-old held several roles including Head of Scouting and Director of Football, before joining Bayer Leverkusen to eventually take on the position of Sports Coordinator, a post which he left back in March, as per Transfermarkt.
The Guardian reported that the Irons are looking to add to their recruitment team and were considering the German as a serious candidate having made a positive impression whilst holding talks, during which he met up with David Moyes.
The London Stadium outfit must have been happy with what they saw in negotiations because it wasn’t long before Romano stated that the deal was “done and almost sealed” as confirmed by sources close to the club, and it sounds like an official announcement is now imminent.
Are West Ham appointing Steidten?
Taking to Twitter, Romano revealed that West Ham are set to unveil Steidten as their latest fresh member of the hierarchy, with the statement being put out simply a matter of time. He wrote:
“No doubts on West Ham appointing Tim Steidten as new technical director — it will be completed soon, it’s done since last week.”
What could Steidten bring to E20?
West Ham will know that they will need to find a suitable technical director in order to progress the club both on and off the pitch and Steidten would be the perfect candidate with the bags of experience and excellent track record that he could bring to E20.
During his time at Bayer Leverkusen, the transfer guru was credited with a key role in signing the likes of Edmond Tapsoba, Jeremie Frimpong and Piero Hincapie, who have all gone on to become huge prospects, with reports suggesting that he puts a heavy focus on data and youth when identifying transfer targets.
Should Declan Rice be sold, Steidten is likely to have a healthy budget to play with and he’s clearly in demand having also held discussions with Manchester United, so it’s a massive coup that the Irons have managed to fend off the competition and he is an appointment that supporters are no doubt excited about.