Manager confirms West Ham star will captain his country for the first time, Arsenal star injured

Yesterday at 01:45 PM

With the injury-prone Arsenal ace ruled out of October’s international fixtures, West Ham United’s £38 million man will enjoy a piece of personal history this week.

For the first time – in his 35th cap – the West Ham attacker will lead his team out for the very first time.

There is arguably no greater pride in professional football than captaining your country on the international stage.

And while Mohammed Kudus has certainly been an inspirational presence in the Ghana side in recent times, the difference is, this time, he will be driving his teammates on with the armband clasped around his bicep.

Arsenal’s Thomas Partey will play no part in Ghana’s African Cup of Nations qualifier with Sudan. And, in Partey’s absence, it will be Kudus who takes the captaincy.

West Ham ace Mohammed Kudus to captain Ghana for first time

“This is my job [to make such decisions],” Oddo tells a press conference. “We, as a staff, discussed it. I chose at the end, and I’m sure it will work.

“We are not thinking too much about the players who are not here. It’s more about the players who are here, their qualities and how we can inspire them to perform.

“Kudus will lead the team,” adds Oddo, who is keen to ensure the leadership duties do not fall purely on Partey’s shoulders. “I don’t know if I have said it before but, for us, it is leadership with responsibility and not about wearing the captain’s armband.

“In Ghana, I know traditionally we have a lot of respect for elderly players. But on the field, everybody is equal.”

Kudus, Ghana’s star performer during the 2022 Qatar World Cup, has the third-most goals and the fourth-most caps in Oddo’s current squad.

Only Partey and Leicester City utility man Jordan Ayew have hit the target more often for their country than West Ham’s former Ajax star.

And, after a sluggish start to the season for Kudus and The Hammers as a whole, both player and club enjoyed a pressure-releasing 4-1 win over Ipswich Town on Saturday afternoon.

Kudus opens Premier League account in lift-off for Julen Lopetegui

Kudus, hauled off at half-time in the draw with Brentford a week earlier, opened his account for 2024/25 with a towering, almost gravity-defying header which put Julen Lopetegui’s side ahead just before half-time.

Time will tell whether it proves to be the start of something special – West Ham were growing increasingly concerned with Lopetegui’s dreadful start – or merely a false dawn.

“I'm happy for the fans and the players too because they deserve this,” Lopetegui said after Kudus and West Ham finally showed what they are capable of. “It was a hard match, as all the matches in the Premier League are, but we did very well.

“We started very well, but suffered a very early equalising goal. I think after that we had a very good mentality, we kept strong and we deserved to score before we did get the second.

“In the last chance of the half, we did score [through Kudus]. And we kept going in the second half. We kept looking for goals and, in the end, we achieved a good victory.”

Sources at West Ham have played down reports of a bust-up between Lopetegui and Kudus too.