West Ham United is delighted to confirm the signing of Ivory Coast international Maxwel Cornet.
The 25-year-old, who can play as a left winger, wing-back or full-back, joins from Burnley on a five-year contract with a further one-year option for an undisclosed fee.
A proven and exciting performer at the highest level, Cornet has made more than 300 senior club appearances with Metz, Olympique Lyonnais and Burnley, netting 61 goals and assisting 31 more, and has appeared 29 times for his country, scoring six times.
A standout performer for Burnley in the Premier League last season, Cornet – who will wear the number 14 shirt – is relishing the opportunity to continue his already impressive career at London Stadium.
“It’s a new step for me to join this big Club and I’m really happy to be here, to be part of the project for the Club. I’m just excited to start,” he said.
“Everyone knows the level here in the Premier League is very high and I want to play here for that, so I'm really happy to be here for the next stage in my career.
“It will be amazing to play in front of 62,500 fans at London Stadium. I played here for Burnley last season and I can’t wait to experience it as a West Ham player.”
Hammers manager David Moyes expressed his happiness at bringing in a player with extensive Premier League, Ligue 1 and international experience who can contribute immediately and adds undoubted quality to his squad.
“We are delighted to welcome Maxwel to West Ham United. He is a versatile player with good experience, both in the Premier League and in European football, and will add strength and quality to our squad,” said Moyes.
“He made a big impact with his performances for Burnley last season and he has impressed me with his desire to improve and challenge himself further here at West Ham.
“We look forward to bringing Maxwel into the group and wish him all the best in his career with us.”
Born in the town of Bregbo, just east of Ivorian capital Abidjan, Cornet moved with his family to northeast France at the age of three, settling in Metz.
At seven, he joined the city’s eponymous football club. A teenage prodigy, Cornet made his senior debut in the third tier Championnat National in August 2012, aged just 15 years and eleven months. After playing nine times to help Metz win promotion in 2012/13, he appeared 14 times – playing alongside future West Ham striker Diafra Sakho – as Les Grenats won Ligue 2 at the first attempt.
Cornet moved to Lyon in January 2015, still aged just 18, and quickly established himself as an integral member of Les Gones’ starting XI, scoring 12 goals in his first full season to help them finish second in Ligue 1.
Quick, strong, competitive and capable of scoring all types of goals, Cornet became a mainstay of a Lyon team that regularly finished in Ligue 1’s top four, as his record of eight goals in 39 European appearances, including a UEFA Champions League quarter-final strike against Manchester City in August 2020, illustrates.
After six-and-a-half years with Lyon, Cornet moved to the Premier League with Burnley, for whom he scored nine goals in 28 appearances on his way to winning the club’s Fans’ Footballer of the Year award.
At international level, Cornet was capped over 50 times by France at age-group level, before opting to represent the country of his birth at senior level in 2017. Since then, he has been a regular member of the Elephants’ squad, appearing at two CAF Africa Cup of Nations tournaments.
West Ham United would like to welcome Maxwel to the Club and wish him every success at London Stadium.
