West Ham United chiefs have reached out to a £90,000-a-week Hammers star who has recently had words with Julen Lopetegui.
Tension building at West Ham after poor start under Lopetegui
The Irons haven’t had the start to the new Premier League season they would have been hoping for, especially after splashing the cash on several new faces over the summer.
So far, Lopetegui has guided West Ham to just one top-flight victory, and last time out, his side had to come from behind against Brentford to take a point after Tomas Soucek’s second-half equaliser.
Match
Date
Opponent
Competition
Result
#8
28/09/2024
Brentford (A)
Premier League
1-1 draw
#7
25/09/2024
Liverpool (A)
Carabao Cup
5-1 loss
#6
21/09/2024
Chelsea (H)
Premier League
3-0 loss
#5
14/09/2024
Fulham (A)
Premier League
1-1 draw
#4
31/08/2024
Man City (H)
Premier League
3-1 loss
#3
28/08/2024
Bournemouth (H)
Carabao Cup
1-0 win
#2
24/08/2024
Crystal Palace (A)
Premier League
2-0 win
#1
17/08/2024
Aston Villa (H)
Premier League
2-1 loss
Lopetegui took the positives after coming away from Brentford with a point, saying: “We knew that we had a very tough match, they won both matches here against Southampton and Crystal Palace and we suffered by conceding in the first minute.
“We showed this [Brentford’s record of scoring early] to the players and it’s incredible we suffered. It’s a bad picture to concede so early. We kept calm and I think we deserved to win the match in the second half, we showed character and commitment.
“We had three or four very clear situations to score a second goal but we didn’t manage it and we take a point. I have to keep positive. We always have to work as a team or we are weaker – I think we did this in the second half.”
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However, it seems as if there was plenty of tension in the dressing room against Brentford at half-time between Lopetegui and star winger Mohammed Kudus.
Kudus and Lopetegui involved in words during West Ham’s draw with Brentford
According to The Athletic’s Roshane Thomas on Wednesday, there were words exchanged between Kudus and Lopetegui at the interval on the weekend. Kudus, on £90,000-a-week, spoke out to the manager at his half-time withdrawal for Carlos Soler but did join his teammates to watch the second half.
It is claimed that Lopetegui wasn’t impressed with the Ghana international’s display and since then, contact has been made between some members of the West Ham hierarchy and Kudus’ representatives ‘to reassure them that there were no issues between the player and the head coach’.
Talking after the game, Lopetegui explained his decision to replace Kudus: “It was for tactical reasons. The second half we worked as a team, and for me this is a very important step. I highlighted the behaviour in the second half because I think we put on the pitch what we needed.”
