Havard Nordtveit to West Ham: Latest Transfer Details, Reaction and More

Former Arsenal midfielder Havard Nordtveit has signed for West Ham United, and he will join the Hammers on a free transfer in the summer after a successful spell with Borussia Monchengladbach.

The Hammers announced the deal on their Twitter feed on Monday:

"It has always been a dream for me to play in the Premier League and now I have a big opportunity to do that for West Ham—I cannot wait to start!" he told the club's official website. “This team has something special, a spirit in the team that I can fit into. I will work hard and hopefully I can get some good moments at this club."

The 25-year-old, who has penned a five-year deal with West Ham, reinvented himself in the Bundesliga after leaving the Gunners in 2010 and was reportedly a popular transfer target, with the likes of Borussia Dortmund, Schalke 04 and Atletico Madrid all eyeing a move, per MailOnline's Rob Draper.

According to Bild (via Jamie Anderson in the Daily Star), Arsenal were interested in a reunion, but the Norwegian instead opted to join West Ham.

BT Sport's Archie Rhind-Tutt thinks this represents a savvy bit of business by the club:

Nordtveit started his career as a centre-back and failed to make the grade in that role at the Emirates Stadium, but FC Nurnberg tried him out as a holding midfielder during a loan spell, and it quickly became clear he was better suited to playing in the centre of the park.

With Monchengladbach, he has played all over midfield and even as a right-back, but he has done his best work playing around Granit Xhaka and Mahmoud Dahoud. The three combined to form one of the Bundesliga's most dynamic midfield units, and the club was keen to keep it intact for as long as possible.

While defensively minded, Nordtveit can also pose a threat going forward, particularly from long range, per OptaJoe:

Per Alex Chaffer of DW Sports, sporting director Max Eberl did everything he could to get Nordtveit to sign a new deal, but once a self-imposed February deadline passed, a switch seemed inevitable.

Boris Streubel/Getty Images

West Ham manager Slaven Bilic revealed the Hammers were tracking the Norway international in March, per Jacob Steinberg of the Guardian. The Croatian admitted it would take some effort to convince him to leave the Bundesliga, where he played for a UEFA Champions League club and could have joined just about any team.

Nordtveit shouldn't need much time to adapt to the Premier League, and if his performances for Monchengladbach are any indication, he could slide into West Ham's midfield almost immediately and provide plenty of cover for the defence.

As a free-agent signing, he represents superb value. At the very least, he'll provide additional depth heading into the 2016-17 campaign.