West Ham United have announced their sixth summer signing in the form of defender Thilo Kehrer from Paris Saint-Germain in a deal believed to be worth £10million – and Anton Ferdinand has delivered a seven-word verdict.
Kehrer, 25, joined PSG from Schalke back in 2018 and went on to clock up 128 appearances for the French Champions. But he has fallen down the pecking order in the last 12 months, managing just 20 starts during the 22-23 season.
A 20-time Germany international, Kehrer has decided he did not want to sit on the bench at PSG. He has left the French club, moving to London and with West Ham. The Hammers have been in desperate need of defensive additions.
Kehrer is naturally a centre-back but can play anywhere across the back four. Adept at right-back and solid on the left. Ben Johnson was a makeshift centre-back on Sunday – with Angelo Ogbonna, Craig Dawson and Nayef Aguerd out.
So, Kehrer comes in to ease that area of the defence. He becomes the club’s sixth addition, along with Gianluca Scamacca, Alphonse Areola, Flynn Downes, Aguerd and Maxwel Cornet. Ferdinand has reacted on Instagram.
West Ham have announced Kehrer: Ferdinand verdict
It is a brilliant bit of business from the Hammers. Kehrer is a top, top defender. One that has been good enough to play 128 times in four years for a club like PSG, and to earn 20 Germany caps. He is still only 25.
So, to get him for £10million is a bargain. Not only that, either. He offers incredible quality on the right, in the middle and cover on the left. He is arguably a better option at right-back than Vladimir Coufal.
At centre-back, the likes of Kurt Zouma and Aguerd are probably better. But he is certainly an improvement on Dawson and Ogbonna. With rotation likely given European football, Kehrer is a superb addition, and a real coup.
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