West Ham United will appoint Tim Steidten as their new technical director, according to Fabrizio Romano.
The 44-year-old will move to England for a new experience in the Premier League.
Tottenham Hotspur considered Steidten when looking for a replacement for departed sporting director Fabio Paratici.
The Hammers were considering candidates for the technical director position as they planned to restructure their front office.
West Ham reportedly agreed a deal with Steidten ahead of their Europa Conference League final clash with Fiorentina, which they won.
They have now qualified for next season’s Europa League and must map out plans to improve their squad.
Steidten left Leverkusen in March. He will sign a contract shortly to take on the technical director role at West Ham.
Brentford’s Lee Dykes and AS Monaco’s Paul Mitchell were the other contenders for the job.
Dykes has received acclaim for building a mid-table side on a budget, while Mitchell is highly regarded for his work at Tottenham and Southampton.
However, Steidten got the job and will work alongside sporting director Mark Noble.
Steidten, a defensive midfielder by trade, moved from a professional playing career to scouting. He got his first job at Werder Bremen in 2008.
He left the Bundesliga outfit to become head of scouting at Leverkusen in 2019.
The former Oldenburg midfielder has played a crucial role in signing several young talents at the club, including Edmond Tapsoba, Jeremie Frimpong and Piero Hincapie.
Steidten discovered Tapsoba in the Primeira Liga with Vitoria de Guimaraes after only a handful of appearances. He has since been a consistent first-team player.
Frimpong has become one of the best full-backs in the world since joining from Celtic and could land Leverkusen plenty of money if he transfers away.
Barcelona, Bayern Munich and Manchester United are eyeing him this summer.
Hincapie is still a diamond in the rough but has a massive upside. Chelsea explored signing him in January, and he would earn Die Werkself a bumper fee.
