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West Ham United announce Flynn Downes signing on five-year deal

By Oliver Thomas, Senior Reporter | 07 July 2022

West Ham announce Flynn Downes signing on five-year deal

West Ham United announce the signing of midfielder Flynn Downes from Swansea City for an undisclosed fee, believed to be worth up to £14m.

West Ham United have announced the signing of midfielder Flynn Downes from Swansea City for an undisclosed fee, believed to be worth up to £14m.

The 23-year-old has put pen to paper on a five-year contract, with the option to extend his deal by a further year.

Downes, who will wear the number 12 shirt at the London Stadium, becomes David Moyes's third signing of the summer window after centre-back Nayef Aguerd and goalkeeper Alphonse Areola.

Speaking to the club's official website on his arrival at West Ham, Downes said: "It's a surreal feeling to have joined my boyhood club. I feel like I'm dreaming.

"It's been my dream since I was a little boy to join this club - it's an absolute privilege. This is my club, so I couldn't be more delighted. I'm glad to be here and I can't wait to get started.

"I want to be the best I can be and this feels like the perfect opportunity to test myself against the very best players in the Premier League.

Summer signing No.3! 🤩 pic.twitter.com/9pcapc83nZ
— West Ham United (@WestHam) July 7, 2022

"Players have come to West Ham from the Championship and progressed to international honours. That's something you can't ignore. The manager's track record of bringing players through was a big motivation in me joining the club. I'm so grateful for the opportunity to be a West Ham player."

Moyes added: "We are pleased to have signed Flynn and are looking forward to bringing him into the group.

"We think he's got good energy. We think he's got a lot of things which we have about our team, which we would want to keep and want to add to. I'm looking forward to it.

"We brought Jarrod Bowen from a similar situation at Hull, so we're always trying to find boys from the Championship who we think are going to step up to become Premier League players. I'm hoping that Flynn does. I think there's a good chance as he's got an awful lot of good attributes."

Downes leaves Swansea after just one season with the Welsh club, where he made 39 appearances across all competitions.

The Brentwood-born midfielder began his career with Ipswich Town, where he spent four years as a senior player before moving to Swansea last summer for around £1.5m.

Downes will now get the chance to test himself in the Premier League and Europa League next season, and he could make his competitive debut for West Ham in their opening top-flight fixture at home against champions Manchester City on August 7.