Crysencio Summerville has broken his silence on his departure from West Ham a year after his close friend Mohammed Kudus angered fans with the way he handled his own exit.
When West Ham signed Mohammed Kudus the club accepted he would not be sticking around long.
The Ghanaian very much saw the Hammers as a stepping stone when they paid Ajax £38m for him.
Kudus was so confident he would move on to one of Europe’s elite he demanded an £85m release clause in his West Ham contract when they beat a number of clubs to his signature, including Chelsea and Brighton.
Summerville puts friend Kudus to shame over West Ham exit
When the Hammers went out and brought in a player of a very similar profile in Crysencio Summerville for £26m the following summer, the grand plan was that he would ultimately take Kudus’ place in the side.
During their season together in east London, Summerville and Kudus became very close friends with the Ghanaian taking the Dutchman under his wing.
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That was illustrated when Summerville made a beeline for Kudus, who was sat behind the dugout as he was unavailable, to celebrate his first goal for West Ham.
When West Ham came to sell Kudus last summer, he didn’t have Europe’s top clubs queueing up for his services as Spurs emerged as his only suitors.
He then burned his bridges with Hammers fans by turning up late for training as he demanded to leave for Tottenham.
When Kudus completed the move – for £30m less than his release clause – he became the first player to transfer between the bitter rivals for nearly 15 years.
He further angered West Ham supporters by saying he ‘only wanted Spurs’ and had ‘Tottenham in his heart’.
Kudus put out a very generic goodbye to West Ham on social media at the time, which summed up his attitude towards the club.
That saw Kudus labelled ‘Judus’ by Hammers fans when he played against them last term as he flopped in his debut season with three goals before an injury midway through the campaign, which is still keeping him out of action to this day.
Summerville’s classy farewell to West Ham after £65m move
After relegation, it was inevitable some top players would leave the London Stadium.
Tottenham paid a whopping £85m for Mateus Fernandes and wanted Summerville to join him.
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But Summerville snubbed Tottenham out of respect for the Hammers, which will ensure he gets a warm reception in the future from West Ham fans.
Now that has been cemented further still.
Because Summerville has put his friend Kudus to shame as he speaks out on leaving West Ham for the first time.
Taking to his Instagram, Summerville has shown real class with his message to the club and its fans after sealing a £65m move to Saudi side Al Hilal.
“Dear Irons, this is the end of my time as a West Ham player,” Summerville said alongside a video montage of highlights of his time at the club.
“I want to thank the fans for the unbelievable support you have shown me over the last two seasons.
“Through the good times and the difficult ones, you were always there.
“I also want to thank all my teammates and everyone in the coaching and backroom staff.
“I couldn’t have done it without you all. Wherever life and football take me, I will always be blowing bubbles in the air.
“One love, Cry.”
And that, Mohammed Kudus, is how you conduct yourself.
While Kudus will now forever be disliked by most West Ham fans, for Summerville it is a case of once a Hammer, always a Hammer.
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