Fonte swaps Saints for West Ham in disappointing circumstances

Portuguese European Championship winning defender Jose Fonte has controversially swapped his home of seven years at Southampton for West Ham United. 

Jose Fonte leaves Southampton to sign for West Ham

The 33-year-old has left St. Marys in disappointing circumstances. Fonte had been agitating for a move for some time and had been left out of Claude Puel’s side since the beginning of the year when the defender handed in a transfer request.

Leaving the club in such a manner leaves a bitter taste for many Saints fans. To see their club captain, who had played such an important role in the clubs recent history, exit in this way wasn’t exactly the acrimonious ending that they would have hoped for.

Jose was the last remaining player who had overseen the Hampshire side’s rise from the obscurity of League One. During his time with Saints he won the Johnstones Paint Trophy at Wembley in 2010 when Alan Pardew was in charge and then was a virtual ever-present in back-to-back promotions to reach the Premier League under Nigel Adkins. 

Fonte was at the heart of the Southampton defence for a number of years and played a major role in helping the Saints to establish themselves in the top flight and indeed three successive record Premier League finishes followed under managers Mauricio Pochettino in 2013/2014 and then Dutch boss Ronald Koeman in the 2014/2015 and 2015/2016 seasons as Saints finished eighth, seventh and sixth respectively.

Undoubtedly, Fonte has been a great servant to the club. Had it been Manchester United and not West Ham, then fans would have sent Jose on his way with their best wishes knowing that he would be going to much a bigger club – but signing for the Hammers feels very much like a sideways move and chasing a few extra quid.

For West Ham it’s deemed a good solid move. Chairman David Gold noted Fonte’s experience. “He has played over 250 games for Southampton in the top flight and is a seasoned professional who will settle in straight away,” said Gold.

Upon signing for West Ham Fonte was quick to mention the size of the club that he had joined. “I signed for West Ham because they are a great club and a very big club.”

The deal is reportedly worth £8 million to Southampton. On reflection, perhaps it’s a good deal for Saints to offload an unhappy player who is approaching the twilight years of his career. Saints paid just £800,000 for Fonte in 2009 and are now left with the task of searching for his replacement.

Jose Fonte

Jamie Montigue