All eyes were on Mohammed Kudus as he returned to West Ham victorious with Tottenham Hotspur following his controversial summer move.
In the cold light of day the only people to blame for Mohammed Kudus leaving West Ham for bitter rivals Tottenham are the club’s board.
Kudus was always going to be leaving in the summer when West Ham started pleading PSR poverty.
The Hammers could have sold him to Chelsea but turned down a player plus cash swap deal involving Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall.
West Ham made their own bed and the fact they had to sell to Spurs for the first time in over 14 years speaks volumes of the state the club is in.
In the end Kudus’ performance against the Hammers was pretty typical.
The head down merchant is one of the best dribblers around but has no end product and Tottenham will find the same frustrations soon enough.
Kudus all show but Spurs rout drowned out West Ham jeers
It was all show as usual, quite literally, as Kudus showboated with a pointless backheel control – something he did on a regular basis at West Ham.
The Ghanaian did not help himself by burning bridges with West Ham as he declared his love for Spurs when unveiled in north London.
Tottenham have been incessantly goading West Ham with posts about Kudus before, during and after the game.
The former Ajax attacker was booed and jeered throughout.
The biggest cheer of the day from the Hammers fans came when a ball boy refused to give Kudus the ball for one of his plethora of corners.
Tottenham had so many of them, West Ham fans actually got bored of booing Kudus.
El Hadji Malick Diouf keeping Kudus quiet as least spared Hammers supporters the ignominy of him scoring or assisting.
But West Ham fans have been venting their fury at another meek surrender from Graham Potter and his side the moment Tottenham took the lead.
The Hammers roll over and have their bellies tickled at the first sign of adversity under Potter, who has been criticised over a perceived lack of leadership.
In the build-up to the game, Potter refused to take the Kudus bait as he was quizzed on his return to West Ham with Spurs.
What Kudus did to Potter and said to backroom team is revealed
The Hammers boss even refused to mention Kudus by name or offer any pleasantries about him, which is usually par for the course in those circumstances.
West Ham fans are not sure Potter truly grasps the rivalry between the two clubs.
Particularly after he angered them by saying he hoped they would go on and win the Europa League last season.
How naïve and ill-advised those comments look now.
Spurs winning the Europa League meant qualification for the Champions League and an instant £100m transfer funds advantage over the likes of West Ham.
An advantage Tottenham used to take one of Potter’s best players away in the summer window.
Although Spurs making Europe’s top competition gave Potter another convenient excuse after the insipid 3-0 defeat as he trotted out that West Ham struggled to compete with “Champions League side Spurs”.
The same “Champions League side” that finished 17th last season, three places below Potter’s hapless Hammers.
Kudus kept his emotions in check as he was understandably barracked by the home support.
You don’t leave West Ham for Tottenham and then come back expecting a warm reception. Especially when you go on to say things like ‘I only wanted Spurs’.
Now what Kudus did to Potter and said to the West Ham backroom team in the Spurs rout has been revealed.
The Ghanaian forward’s actions towards Potter were actually caught on camera and have driven fierce opinion among supporters.
And the words he shared with the backroom team have been revealed by a Hammers journalist.
Kudus embraced Potter and grateful for stool return
A reporter for 3 Sports Ghana was following Kudus’ return to the London Stadium.
And he captured footage of Kudus making a point of running over to Potter, after lining up ready for kick-off, to embrace his former boss and salute the West Ham bench.
Kudus is then seen shaking hands with Lucas Paqueta on the pitch.
While it is a touch of class from Kudus, West Ham fans felt the whole situation summed up the lack of bite and spite in their team for the biggest derby of the season.
After the game Kudus was also seen speaking to West Ham’s backroom staff near the family enclosure at the stadium.
Roshane Thomas claims the Hammers were returning the winger’s wooden elephant stool to him that he used for celebrations after scoring in West Ham home games.
Thomas claims Kudus had a brief chat as he received the Ghanaian stool back and duly thanked West Ham for returning it.
So much for being sworn enemies. Many fans have remarked it is further proof that ‘the game has gone’.
A penny for Roy Keane’s thoughts.