West Ham United star Mateus Fernandes says Nuno Espirito Santo's arrival at his Premier League side has personally benefited him.
The midfielder arrived in the UK when Southampton signed him from Sporting in August 2024.
Southampton were relegated from the Championship, allowing West Ham to secure his services for more than £40 million last August [€46.2m].
At the time, the Premier League team was manager of the team with Graham Potter and was replaced by Nuno in September.
The 21-year-old played 2,506 minutes in 30 matches for the Hammers, three of which were under Potter. He scored three goals and three assists in the Premier League and his per game statistics in the league are given below.
| premier league 2025/26 | |
|---|---|
| big opportunities were created | 2 |
| key passes | 1 |
| shot on target | 0.2 |
| interception | 1 |
| tackle | 3% |
| ball retrieval | 4.9 |
| couple won | 5.4 |
His performances for West Ham led to his first call up from Portugal manager Roberto Martínez for the March international break.
Nuno's importance to West Ham
Earlier today, Mateus Fernandes attended a press-conference game Has released his comments. He is happy to make a place in the national team.
"I'm very happy to be here. It's always been a goal this season. I know the quality in the national team is very high. It's probably the best team at the moment individually. It was a nice surprise. It was something I worked for," He said.
The player is expected to not only make his debut for Portugal but also make it to the World Cup.
West Ham now sit 18th in the table, one point behind 17th-placed Tottenham Hotspur. They have lost only three matches since Paco Jemez was appointed as Nuno Espirito Santo's assistant in January.
spaniard recently said When he arrived at the club, morale in the group was low. He talked about increasing confidence within the club. The midfielder is now insisting Nuno's side should not be involved in a relegation battle.
"Last year I had to find the positive things. The daily work, the things we do off the field, the separation when we lose so we don't always be in a negative 'vibe'. It was very important for me to strengthen myself at West Ham this year." Fernandes explained.
"The arrival of manager Nuno also gave me a lot of stability. He trusts me a lot and when you feel the manager's confidence, things happen naturally. I also know the size of the club, which is fighting for top spot in the Premier League table. We are not happy, but we have to change things."
portugal matches and teams
- Friendly vs Mexico on 28 March [29th UK time]
- Friendly vs USA on 31 March
Players called up by Roberto Martínez:
Goalkeepers: Diogo Costa (FC Porto), Jose Sa (Wolverhampton Wanderers), Rui Silva (Sporting CP)
Defenders: Matheus Nunes (Manchester City), Diogo Delot (Manchester United), Joao Cancelo (FC Barcelona), Nuno Mendes (PSG), Gonçalo Inácio (Sporting CP), Renato Veiga (Villarreal), Antonio Silva (SL Benfica), Tomás Araujo (SL Benfica).
Midfielders: Ruben Neves (Al Hilal), Samu Costa (Mallorca), Mateus Fernandes (West Ham), Joao Neves (PSG), Vitinha (PSG), Bruno Fernandes (Manchester United), Rodrigo Mora (FC Porto).
Forwards: Ricardo Horta (SC Braga), Pedro Gonçalves (Sporting CP), Joao Félix (Al Nassr), Francisco Trincao (Sporting CP), Francisco Conceição (Juventus), Rafael Leao (AC Milan), Pedro Neto (Chelsea), Goncalo Guedes (Real Sociedad), Goncalo Ramos (PSG).
🇮🇹Federico Gatti | €25m could be enough for West Ham and Nottingham Forest 💷 Financial concerns are forcing an exithttps://t.co/FpRX2p28Pt #whufc #nffc
- Sports Witness (@Sport_Witness) 11 March 2026
