Make no mistake, if Mohammed Kudus really does swap West Ham United for Tottenham Hotspur in the remainder of the Premier League’s off-season, this will be a deal struck out of necessity rather than desire from the London Stadium outfit.
As a club source exclusively told Hammers News, the lack of other serious offers for Mohammed Kudus means West Ham may have to accept Tottenham’s advances, regardless of whether they really want to or not.
Talks with Chelsea hit a brick wall when the Blues tried to offer a host of players, Jadon Sancho for instance, in exchange. Kudus has little interest in moving to Saudi Arabia despite claims that the former Ajax star could have earned £17 million a year – yes, every year – at Neom SC.
Manchester United are prioritising Bryan Mbeumo. And, over in the north east, Newcastle have other targets higher than Kudus on their wishlist.
Sky Sports‘ Mark McAdam sums up the situation pretty succinctly.
“West Ham maybe have to get creative. They maybe have to sell a few players to give Graham Potter the funds to go and invest and re-shape that squad,” McAdam said on Tuesday.
“Mohammed Kudus is one of those players.”
So the theory put forward by former Crystal Palace chairman-turned-pundit Simon Jordan, speaking talkSPORT as discussions continue between West Ham and Tottenham, feels as inaccurate as it does rather incendiary.
Simon Jordan hits back at West Ham United fans as Tottenham hold Mohammed Kudus talks
Jordan believes that claims of a fierce ‘rivalry’ between West Ham and Spurs have been overblown.
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He also suggests that no player has left the former for the latter since Scott Parker in 2011 simply because, well, Tottenham just didn’t want any Hammers player until Kudus came along.
“I look at this and say, ‘well, why are you so offended? Are you offended by the transfer, or [Kudus] going to Spurs?'” Jordan argues, adding that the fury displayed by many Hammers fans may also be a convenient stick with which to beat unpopular chairman David Sullivan.
“There is no massive rivalry between West Ham and Tottenham, is there? Is there this massive rivalry?
“[The fact that Tottenham have not signed a West Ham player in 14 years] might tell you something about where West Ham have been at a football club. There have been some good players there who have gone on to other things, like Dimitri Payet.
“But maybe Tottenham haven’t coveted them. Tottenham are a bigger club than West Ham.”
Spurs’ Jarrod Bowen interest proves former Crystal Palace owner wrong
Of course, that final comment alone is enough to get backs up at the London Stadium.
Speaking to TNT Sports recently, meanwhile, captain-turned-sporting director Mark Noble admitted that Tottenham sit higher than Arsenal when ranking West Ham’s most despised opposition.
“I don’t think Arsenal were a massive rival. There was just something with Spurs that made it such a big rivalry,” Noble said. “I loved the rivalry. I loved playing in those games.
“I was brought up as a West Ham fan. And being around loads of West Ham fans myself, they always ingrained in me that ‘we’ve always got to beat Spurs’.”
Such an admission, straight from the Hammers’ mouth, should go some way to explaining to the likes of Simon Jordan why reports of Kudus crossing a seldom-touched divide has caused such a stir in the claret and blue corner of London.
As for Jordan’s claim that Tottenham simply didn’t want any other West Ham players in that 14-year gap, well, Jarrod Bowen is a walking, talking, free-scoring example of why that is wide of the mark.
It is no secret that Daniel Levy is a big fan of the Hammers skipper.
Tottenham presumably would have gone all in on Bowen, if not for a massive price-tag which makes Kudus relatively affordable at £60 million.