Scout Report: Gustavo Hamer
Coventry City face a task on their hands if they’re to keep hold of star midfielder Gustavo Hamer. The Brazilian-born player looks set on a move to a Premier League team after he nearly guided his side there, scoring in the Play-Off Final, albeit in vain.
For those who don’t know, here’s where the 26-year-old came from, and just what he can bring to the top-flight of English football.
Born in Brazil, Hamer would move to the Netherlands as a child. His footballing career would have a rocky start, as he would be rejected by several clubs, including ADO Den Haag, before Feyenoord took a chance, and brought him into their youth academy.
From this point, the player would find his feet, making appearances at both U18 and U20 levels for the Netherlands, making his professional debut in April of 2017. Despite his promise, Hamer would only make two appearances for Feyenoord, before being loaned out Dordecht, where he continued to impress.
The Rotterdam based club would choose to cash in on Hamer after his loan spell, allowing him to join PEC Zwolle on a permanent basis. Hamer would go on to have two consistent years in Zwolle but put up by no means inspiring numbers.
In July of 2020, Coventry City put up a fee exceeding £1m to bring the midfielder to England. As the Sky Blues continued to rise in the Championship, so did Hamer, becoming a main stay in the starting XI. Hamer has amassed 130 appearances, scoring 19 goals so far for Coventry.
Hamer is almost the ideal model of a box-to-box midfielder, with a sprinkle of South American aggression and flair added into the mix.
In his first two years in England, the player was often deployed in a defensive midfield role, where he struggled to contribute to the more attacking phase of play, but last year Mark Robins decided to bring him forward, where Hamer would go on to hit double-figures in goals and assists.
Hamer’s biggest strengths lie with ball control and passing range, with and uncanny ability to drive with the ball, or sit deep and distribute to any corner of the pitch. His aggression means he loves to lead counter attacks, and he also never shy’s away from a tackle, often executing well. The 26-year-old lacks in height, standing at 5ft 7 but if there is a player who you need to drive a team up the pitch or take the game by the reigns and invigorate a squad, Hamer fits the bill.
As the use of box-to-box becomes once again fashionable in top-level football, so does the market for Hamer and his style, with Premier League sides, Luton Town, Fulham and Nottingham Forest interested, alongside recently relegated Leeds United also asking questions.
Hamer was a huge part of Coventry’s Play-Off campaign, at 26, his prime years are ahead of him and he seems destined for the top-flight one way or another.
