West Ham complete permanent deal for Said Benrahma

Martin Macdonald

• Updated: 19 May 2021 15:43 BST
• 2 min read

West Ham have secured the permanent signing of Said Benrahma from Brentford for a fee of £21.75 million [€24.5m] plus £5m in add-ons.

Benrahma is currently on loan with the Hammers after they paid a £5m loan fee to recruit him in the summer, with the permanent deal in place for a year later in the summer of 2021.

However, West Ham and manager David Moyes are desperate to free up a domestic loan spot in their squad in order to sign Jesse Lingard on a temporary basis from Man Utd until the end of the season.

That has led to the decision to bring forward the permanent acquisition of Benrahma.

A statement from the club announced the signing, which read:

“West Ham United are pleased to confirm Saïd Benrahma has completed his permanent transfer to the Club.

“The Algeria international attacking midfielder initially linked up with the Hammers on loan from EFL Championship side Brentford in October.

“Now, however, an agreement to make the deal permanent has been exercised, and the 25-year-old has put pen to paper on a contract until 2026.

“A product of the French club Nice, Benrahma excelled during two seasons with Brentford, scoring 30 goals and assisting 27 more, before moving to London Stadium.

“Since making his debut at Liverpool on 31 October, the No9 has made 14 appearances (including Crystal Palace) and registered assists in Premier League wins over Fulham and Aston Villa and the Emirates FA Cup fourth-round victory over Doncaster Rovers.

“Everyone at West Ham United would like to wish Saïd the very best as he continues his career in Claret and Blue.”

West Ham have signed Benrahma permanently even though he has failed to find the back of the net this season, though he has recorded three assists in all competitions.

In the Premier League, he has been restricted to just six starts so far, with Moyes guiding them to a healthy fifth spot in the Premier League following the 3-2 win against Crystal Palace this week.