A reporter has detailed three reasons why Tottenham were able to get West Ham’s green light to sign Mohammed Kudus for well below his release clause.
News broke on Wednesday evening of Tottenham having a £55m bid accepted by West Ham for Kudus. The 24-year-old is primed to sign a six-year contract running until 2031 and is scheduled to undergo a medical on Thursday.
Kudus was not Spurs’ first choice for an attacking addition this summer. Moves for Antoine Semenyo and Bryan Mbeumo were explored first.
Nevertheless, Kudus is a very fine player in his own right and at £55m, the final fee is some distance below what it would’ve cost to sign Mbeumo or Semenyo.
Indeed, Bournemouth quoted a £70m asking price for Semenyo when Spurs enquired. Man Utd’s latest bid for Mbeumo totalled £62.5m and was knocked back by Brentford.
Furthermore, the £55m figure Spurs are paying is a whopping £30m below Kudus’ £85m release clause for Premier League sides.
Reporter Ben Jacobs has shed light on why the Hammers were willing to cash in for a smaller sum and the reasons do not reflect badly on Kudus or Spurs one bit.
“West Ham originally wanted a £60m package but came down in price after Spurs upped the fixed fee following a rejected £50m bid,” wrote Jacobs on X.
“West Ham aware Kudus only wanted Spurs and sale allows them some freedom to now move in the market.”
As stated, West Ham securing a quick-fire sale gives the club more freedom to step on the accelerator for signings of their own.
Furthermore, Spurs agreed to pay a higher portion of the £55m as a fixed fee and not via add-ons, meaning the Hammers have secured more favourable payment terms.
Finally, West Ham’s chances of capitalising on a bidding war for Kudus were nil given the player only wanted to sign for Spurs.
Backing up that final point with an update of his own, Fabrizio Romano stated on X: “Mohammed Kudus didn’t want to negotiate with any other club, only Spurs.
“Clear intentions as revealed last week… and deal now done, as Kudus will become new Tottenham player this week.”
What will Kudus bring to Spurs
Assessing the player and offering insight into how Kudus will be used by Thomas Frank, The Athletic’s Jay Harris wrote:
‘Frank loves players who are positionally versatile. Kudus has spent the majority of his time with West Ham United on the right wing but he operates as a No 10 for Ghana.
‘Frank could use the 24-year-old as a threat cutting inside onto his stronger left foot or as a powerful and dynamic dribbler in tight central areas.
‘Tottenham’s squad struggled to cope with the demands of the Premier League and the Europa League last season so it was crucial that they boosted their numbers this summer.
‘Mathys Tel arrived permanently, after spending the second half of last season on loan from Bayern Munich, but he only turned 20 in April and is still raw. Kudus has a lot of room for growth but is far more experienced and proven.
‘It will be interesting to see how Kudus’ arrival impacts Brennan Johnson and Dejan Kulusevski.
‘Johnson was Tottenham’s top scorer in all competitions last season and he scored the winning goal in the Europa League final. Johnson primarily plays on the right and Frank tried to sign him when he was in charge of Brentford.
‘Will Kudus replace Johnson as the first-choice right winger or will he take over Kulusevski’s playmaking responsibilities in the middle of the pitch?
‘Spurs have a lot of attacking talent at their disposal and it will be fascinating to see how Frank will effectively combine them.’