West Ham’s Star Boy Mohammed Kudus has had to deal with plenty of controversy of late. His public falling out with one football commentator in Ghana and the very public Julen Lopetegui rift at London Stadium appear to have been smoothed over. His demeanour upon scoring in the 4-1 win over Ipswich Town last week seemed one of relief rather than excitement as he sat, shoulders slumped on the ball-boys stool in his trademark ‘celebration’ after netting for the Irons.
He does however seem to have an extra dimension of ‘challenge’ to deal with as Ghana’s stand out performer whenever on international duty: This is of course compounded as his national side are in danger of failing to qualify from their group and criticism is rife within his own country.
The pressure, extends, would you believe, to the superstitions surrounding his new number 10 shirt. From footboom.com comes a report entitled:”Top Coach Advocates for Growth Mindset to Combat Kudus’ No. 10 Superstitions”.
Worse comes from other publications who claim the shirt ‘cursed’ following Kudus’ inexplicable missed chance against Sudan: ESPN Africa even post a video on ‘X’ from a fan blaming Kudus’ miss on the superstition of the number ten shirt.
Yen.com.gh :”Many fans have attributed this missed chance to superstitions surrounding the jersey”
Footboom.com explain: “This shirt, worn previously by Andre Ayew, who has been unavailable for national duty since March, represents a significant cultural value within Ghanian football. The No.10 jersey is typically reserved for the standout player, and there’s much hope resting on Kudus, who is heralded as one of Ghana’s brightest emerging stars.”
And continues..
“The psycho-social aspect is paramount and should never be overlooked. It must be harnessed from a coaching perspective to manage external pressures, especially related to Kudus’ No.10 jersey, where the pressure to perform can lead to performances being unfairly attributed to superstition.
So, some deem it superstition, some a curse – but the noise around Kudus and the extra pressure on him as Ghana prepare to take on Sudan again- in Libya- still wearing the ‘ten’ shirt – must be immense.
He’ll surely be looking forward to the relative peace and quiet of coming back to London – and his claret and blue ‘uncursed’ number 14 shirt. Good old British media can’t seem so bad after this.