On a night when Mohammed Kudus provided another standout performance early in his Tottenham Hotspur career, a man lined up to take his place at West Ham United provided a pair of Champions League assists inside just a quarter of an hour.
With all things considered, Tottenham’s unconvincing 1-0 victory over Villarreal – gifted to them by a bizarre own goal – was one of the more uneventful matches on a thrilling night of elite European action.
Borussia Dortmund threw away a 4-2 lead to draw at Juventus. If there is a German translation for ‘Spursy’, Dortmund fans will be able to tell you.
PSV Eindhoven were stunned at home by Union Saint Gilloise on the Belgians’ Champions League bow, while former West Ham defender Emerson shone on his first Marseille start despite Real Madrid adding yet another late Champions League winner to their ever-growing collection.
Over in Lisbon, meanwhile, Bruno Lage’s Benfica reign came crashing down despite the brilliance of one-time West Ham United target Georgiy Sudakov.
West Ham United wanted Benfica’s Georgiy Sudakov to replace Mohammed Kudus
While Edson Alvarez was disappointed to lose Jose Mourinho at Fenerbahce – the West Ham loanee moved to Turkey partly because of his desire to work with the legendary tactician – one suspects that the return of a prodigal son will capture the imagination of an underachieving Benfica squad.
Sudakov, who joined the Portuguese giants on a loan to buy deal worth around £25 million at the end of the summer window, has only been a Benfica player for two weeks. But the Ukraine international was immediately given a front-row seat into the failings which cost former Wolves boss Bruno Lage his job at the Estadio da Luz.
After West Ham ruled out bringing Jose Mourinho back to the Premier League following his departure from Fenerbahce, a man who started his managerial career in the Benfica dugout a quarter-of-a-century ago is returning to storm the kingdom Ruben Amorim built at Sporting Lisbon.
For Georgiy Sudakov, though, Mourinho’s Lisbon homecoming will not take back the disappointment of Tuesday’s Champions League collapse at home to Qarabag.
According to The Sun’s Alan Nixon, via his official Patreon account, West Ham made contact with Georgiy Sudakov’s camp via intermediaries in July, just days after Mohammed Kudus completed his £54.5 million move to Tottenham Hotspur.
A long-time target of head of recruitment Kyle Macaulay, Ben Jacobs told GiveMeSport four months prior that discussions had begun regarding the then-Shakhtar Donetsk talisman.
And on a night when Kudus stood head and shoulders above his Spurs teammates once again, Sudakov went one, nay two, steps further with a pair of first-half assists.
Sudakov frustrated with Benfica collapse as Jose Mourinho returns to Lisbon
In truth, Georgiy Sudakov never seemed particularly keen on joining West Ham and taking Kudus’ place in Graham Potter’s attack.
The two-time Ukrainian Premier League champion appeared determined to test himself against the continent’s best on a bi-weekly basis. Though a 3-2 defeat by Qarabag of Azerbaijan was not the sort of UCL debut he had in mind.
Sudakov could hardly have gifted Benfica a better start.
His fizzing corner was flicked in by former Aston Villa loanee Enzo Barrenechea after just six minutes. Sudakov then spun on a sixpence and threaded through a pass finished coolly by Vangelis Pavlidis as Benfica doubled their advantage on a quarter of an hour.
That Benfica still ended up on the losing side – Qarabag produced one of the most remarkable comebacks in recent Champions League history – ensured that Sudakov’s dazzling performance would go to waste.
Talk about Spursy.
“It was difficult. We need to lift our heads. First, we have to analyse what happened, take responsibility, look ahead and work hard,” a dejected Sudakov told Sport TV.
“I don’t know, we controlled the game and scored the goals. Then the game changed, I don’t know why. Qarabag didn’t do much, but every counterattack was difficult for us. Our second half was poor, we have to react, keep moving forward, and play better in the next game.
“[Playing for Benfica is] fantastic, but not with this result.”
Make no mistake, a Benfica return will provide a tough challenge indeed of Jose Mourinho’s seemingly dwindling talents.
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