Man City defender Josko Gvardiol’s comments about West Ham winger Mohammed Kudus were telling for one simple reason: he was talking about last season.
The Croatian international is one of the best defenders in the world and gave special mention to Kudus when discussing players he’s struggled with.
While the lavish praise for Kudus was pleasing, it also highlighted the positional switch to the left under Julen Lopetegui, which has severely blunted the Ghanaian’s output.
Last season, Kudus scored an impressive 14 goals, eight of which were in the Premier League. However, the number of shots he took was even more remarkable, as he was deployed on the right side of midfield or centrally, where he unleashed his powerful left foot.
There have been glimpses of his exceptional ball-carrying skills this season, and he was unlucky not to score against Manchester City. However, for the majority of the game, Kudus was isolated on the left, where he seems to lack understanding with Emerson and is denied the chance to shoot from long range with his powerful left foot.
Hammers head coach Lopetegui will need to resolve this situation to get the best out of the winger. This may require moving Jarrod Bowen up front, as Kudus is unlikely to match last season’s exploits if he continues in his current role.
It’s painful to watch. Mick is useless so get Bowen up there. Somerville on the left, Kudus right and either Paqueta or Soler as the 10.
What actually is painful is listening to the insight being given by those who obviously seem to think they know more and have a greater understanding of what is going on than the head coach. Gonzo, how many training sessions have u attended to understand the tactical shift or witness the development of the new system before passing judgement on things you don’t have any kind of inside knowledge of or understand? I’m really sorry to say that this site just gets worse and worse since Hughie passing. You’re happy to spout what ever limited knowledge you have in what ever way you like just to get clicks and views. Less gossip based articles with more insightful content would be nice, have you ever heard of less is more? But I guess that’s not controversial enough for your clickbait based revenue!
It’s clear Kudus is not having the same impact on the left. You don’t need inside info to use your eyes. When he moves to the right he comes alive. He needs to bin Mick and put Bowen up top. Put mo wide right and let him.off the leash
That comment wasn’t aimed at you Jimmy, it was aimed at Gonzo as he has spent the last few days just writing controversial rubbish as he has nothing better to do. If J-Lo wants to experiment with positions and systems then surely thats his perogative. No one else’s opinion actually matters as they aren’t the ones that are judges by results!
‘No-one else’s opinion matters- well, ok, but why do YOU read them, then? I’m scratching my head a little to see why you feel you need to throw insults on line.. By all means disagree, that is why there is a forum. But if you find it so tough to stomach anyone els’es opinion, maybe time to close the lap top and go do something else.
Yes, as I said, If J-Lo wants to experiment with positions and systems then surely that’s his prerogative. So that being the case, no one else’s opinion actually matters apart from J-Lo’s, and especially not Gonzo’s opinion. For the record Its not anyone else’s opinion I have issues with, however its more to do with the build up of negativity over about 5 or 6 articles that he has posted recently, all designed to stir and illicit some kind of response. So unsurprisingly I responded! Not really sure what insults I’m being accused of throwing Martin, and I have definitely disagreed. The last 2 or 3 days Gonzo’s articles have been mostly dire whining posts – 2 about Moyes(just let it go!), then whinging about Hummels and Egan, then moaning about the pathway for the youth team. Honestly I’m sure he seems to think its his place to hold West Ham to account for anything and everything, so that being the case I have held him to account for his articles!