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West Ham United’s Mateus Fernandes stance has been strengthened again after Tottenham Hotspur reportedly emerged with serious confidence in the race for the Portugal midfielder.

According to The Times, Spurs hope to beat Manchester United to Fernandes in a deal that could climb towards £80million. That matters for West Ham because the conversation is no longer about whether relegation has weakened their hand. It is now about how high the auction can go.

West Ham Can Let The Market Set The Price

Fernandes has already been central to the summer noise around Nuno Espirito Santo’s squad, with previous reports around West Ham’s leverage underlining why the club have little reason to blink early.

The 21-year-old joined from Southampton last summer and quickly became one of the few assets capable of reshaping the club’s rebuild in one move. Selling him cheaply would send the wrong message. Letting Tottenham, Manchester United and any late European interest stretch the number closer to West Ham’s preferred level is the harder but smarter play.

For Nuno, the risk is obvious. Fernandes offers press resistance, carrying power and central security that will not be simple to replace in the Championship. But if West Ham are forced into one major sale, this is exactly the kind of bidding tension they need.

The next formal proposal will reveal whether Tottenham’s confidence is genuine. West Ham’s job is simpler: keep the valuation high, keep the process cold, and make any buyer pay the full promotion-rebuild price.

Tottenham Hotspur are pushing for Mateus Fernandes, putting West Ham United back into a familiar summer position where interest in one of their key midfielders becomes a direct test of the club’s rebuild.

The latest transfer update places Fernandes among Spurs’ midfield targets, with Manchester United and Real Madrid also credited with interest. For West Ham, the timing matters because the 21-year-old is one of the players who could shape the next phase of the squad if he stays, or define the size of the rebuild if serious bids arrive.

Fernandes joined West Ham from Southampton for a reported £38million, and the new chase underlines how quickly his market has moved, according to The Guardian’s latest transfer round-up.

West Ham cannot let the market set the tone

The important point for West Ham is control. A player attracting multiple major clubs can quickly become the centre of the window, especially when rivals sense uncertainty around the direction of the squad.

If Tottenham escalate their interest, West Ham need either a clear valuation that makes a sale work on their terms, or a firm stance that Fernandes is central to the reset.

That decision will say plenty about the club’s summer. Keeping him would protect midfield continuity. Selling him would only make sense if the money funds several upgrades quickly, because supporters have already seen enough half-finished rebuilds to know the risk.

Tottenham Hotspur currently hold the worst injury record in the Premier League this season

West Ham United boast one of the strongest availability records across the division

Squad fitness could be a defining factor in the relegation battle run-in

At this stage of the Premier League season, the table only tells part of the story.

Form, points and momentum will always dominate the conversation, but there are other influences that begin to surface as the run-in approaches small details that can shape big outcomes. Sometimes it is confidence, sometimes it is depth, and sometimes it is simply who is available when it matters most.

For West Ham United and Tottenham Hotspur, that underlying theme has been present for much of the campaign, lingering in the background without always taking centre stage.

Now, with the stakes rising and every point carrying greater weight, it is becoming harder to ignore.

Spurs top injury table, while West-Ham are second bottom

According to data from Transfermarkt.co.uk, Spurs have endured the worst injury record in the Premier League this season, with a staggering 363 games missed by 27 players, totalling 1,377 days lost to injury across the campaign.

Their recent win over Wolves came at a heavy cost: Dominic Solanke, the man brought in to spearhead their survival bid, suffered a grade-two hamstring injury that could sideline him for up to eight weeks. That same match saw Xavi Simons suffer an ACL tear that could rule him out until next season.

With only four league matches left, Aston Villa, Leeds, Chelsea, and Everton the pair are joining a list of absentees that reads like an entire first XI: Cristian Romero, Mohammed Kudus, Dejan Kulusevski, Wilson Odobert, Guglielmo Vicario, and Ben Davies, among others.

In contrast, West Ham sit at the opposite end of the spectrum, with just 78 games missed from eleven players. That is not a small gap. That is essentially a season’s worth of availability.

At points this season, Spurs have been without 7 to 11 players per matchday, a rolling crisis that has left them constantly firefighting rather than planning.

West Ham, on the other hand, has had something Tottenham simply hasn’t: stability, particularly since the turn of the year with Nuno Espírito Santo.

That 285-game difference could tell the deciding story. It means a more settled matchday squad. It means players building understanding week after week. It means fewer compromises, fewer square pegs in round holes.

It does not guarantee results, but Spurs sit 18th, two points adrift of safety. West Ham have had their own inconsistencies, but it gives them a platform. And at this stage of the season, that platform matters.