Lopetegui’s exit is the gift that keeps on giving. Press conferences become worth watching again rather than mental endurance challenges. Team tactics become decypherable and perhaps most importantly, the squad is integrated again and on-message. Instead of the ‘want-away’ factions being troublesome and likely to leave, the message coming out of West Ham is of a team working together for the greater good.
None sum this up better than Mohammed Kudus. Back in November he was telling his brother to get him out of the club: He’d just had a very well publicised bust-up with the head coach and was serving a five game suspension after ‘dumb and dumber’ fisticuffs against Tottenham.
Indeed it was looking very much as if West Ham would be dragged into ‘cashing in’ on Kudus in January with Liverpool and Arsenal reported just a couple of months ago to be readying bids of £85 million.
All that talk of a January sale has evaporated since Lopetegui packed his bags and the mood music is altogether different in 2025.
To listen to the Ghanainan now you’d not believe the same person was speaking, as he is reported telling whufc.com:
“I set higher standards for myself. I’m not there yet, but we keep working because individually and as a team, we all know the reality of the situation we are in.
“Right now, the focus is not on whether I score or not, but finding ways to get the team the points, which is part of the game. Most importantly, I’m fit and healthy and available to play a part in helping the team every single game.”
The last part of the equation will be results on the pitch. Now that the Hammers’ quintet of want aways – Alvarez, Kudus, Areola Todibo and Fullkrug – all seem to be committing to the Potter ethos, the prospect for the second half of the season is far more positive than Lopetegui’s short-lived reign. Kudus has no international competition to distract him this year as sadly his Ghana side is out of the winter AFCON 25. It does give him the chance to get his head down and get back to doing what he does best.
Compared with the Lopetegui era left-sided starts which he had to endure, the simple and blindingly obvious tweaks by Potter to start Kudus centrally or in an ‘inside right’ role will surely get him back to his best. Goals cannot be far away. The real trick for Potter will be to hang on to the Ghanaian in the summer. But that’s a whole other story.
