West Ham must have been looking towards the future when reports emerged suggesting we had our eyes on Mainz 05’s young sensation Erkan Eyibil.
The club’s efforts to land the ‘new Mesut Ozil’ have, however, taken a step back already, as Aksam are suggesting that Fenerbache have entered the race for the 17-year-old wonderkid and will present strong opposition to the Hammers, Newcastle, and his current side.
Eyibil is considered to be easily one of the best for his age group in Germany, thanks to his ability to play across the midfield attacking line, and returned from injury this season to register nine goals and four assists in 16 A-Junioren Bundesliga games.
If we are to pip the Super Lig side to the rising star, we will have to put forward a convincing case that he will be given a chance in the first-team, as that is the stumbling block in his negotiations with Mainz.
As for Fenerbahce, their position now appears to be ahead of ours, as Aksam understands that Eyibil is open to the idea of playing a part in the Turkish strugglers rebuilding process, although a final decision is yet to be made.
With his current contract set to expire in 2020, however, he will likely move on in the summer if he does not recommit his future to Die Nullfunfer.
In the meantime, Eyibil’s stock will only continue to rise now that he has joined the German U18 side for the first time, and is set to make his debut against France this Friday.
