What Jose Mourinho said about Kurt Zouma will delight West Ham but haunt Chelsea as video footage emerges online.
West Ham signed centre-back Zouma from London rivals Chelsea for just under £30 million before the transfer window closed.
The France international had been David Moyes’s prime target for West Ham all summer.
But he had been featuring regularly for Chelsea in pre-season. And the Blues had made it clear they would only let him go if they signed Zouma’s France teammate Jules Kounde from Sevilla.
Chelsea believed they had that deal signed and sealed – and may yet revisit in January – and allowed Zouma to join West Ham.
But Kounde ended up staying at Sevilla. And 26-year-old Zouma has been an absolute revelation for the Hammers.
Zouma scored his first West Ham goal in the 3-2 win over Liverpool which lifted the east Londoners up to third in the Premier League table, just three points off his former club and leaders Chelsea.
Already a massive fan favourite at West Ham – as he was at Chelsea – many supporters of both clubs and their rivals, as well some high profile pundits, have questioned Thomas Tuchel’s decision to let Zouma leave.
Now a video has emerged with comments from Jose Mourinho on Zouma from a couple of years ago.
And what Mourinho said about Zouma will delight West Ham but haunt Chelsea.
“Chelsea needs a centre back? Zouma,” Mourinho said about the new Hammers star back in 2019.
“You don’t need to buy. You don’t need to spend.
“Zouma. He’s champion of England, he played for Chelsea, he played for Stoke in the Premier League, he played for Everton in the Premier League.
“He plays for France. He’s your player, he’s on loan, where are you going to buy a better player than him? You have him.”
Not anymore they don’t. And West Ham fans are loving it.
Of course it could be argued Chelsea, sitting pretty at the top of the table, don’t necessarily miss him.
But after every game Zouma plays for West Ham, social media is flooded with messages from bemused fans asking why the Blues sold him.
Moyes and West Ham don’t care about that of course.
He could well be the missing piece that helps the Hammers go one step further than last season and make the Champions League spots.
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