West Ham star compared to three-time UCL winner in stunning praise, as selling club blasted

Edson Alvarez and Mohammed Kudus have received huge praise from a Dutch journalist after they helped West Ham United topple Arsenal on Wednesday night.

Both players were in from the start as West Ham hosted Mikel Arteta’s side at the London Stadium in the League Cup round of 16. And they played a huge role in the Irons brilliantly knocking Arsenal out with a convincing 3-1 victory.

Alvarez put in a top performance to prevent Arsenal’s midfield from controlling the game, and the Gunners were unable to deal with his aggression.

Kudus, meanwhile, excellently netted West Ham’s second after a Ben White own goal had given them the lead.

The 23-year-old managed to bring down a raking Nayef Aguerd pass perfectly, before beating Arsenal goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale with a low drive into the far corner.

Jarrod Bowen then joined him on the scoresheet with a 60th-minute volley which hit Jakub Kiwior on its way into the net. Martin Odegaard bagged a late consolation goal for the visitors, but they were deservedly knocked out of the cup by David Moyes’ men.

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Both defensive midfielder Alvarez and versatile forward Kudus swapped Ajax for West Ham over the summer, and they are now thriving in England.

The pair performed so well against Arsenal that reporter Henk Spaan, writing for Amsterdam-based newspaper Het Parool, has likened Alvarez to both three-time Champions League/European Cup winner Frank Rijkaard and Johan Cruyff, who is one of the best players of all time.

Alvarez, Kudus help West Ham ‘destroy’ Arsenal

Spaan referred to the fine form of Alvarez and Kudus in contrast with Ajax’s recent displays, as the Eredivisie giants have imploded this season.

“Anyone who wanted to see what was wrong with Ajax should have watched West Ham-Arsenal on Wednesday,” he said (via Sport Witness).

“A championship candidate was destroyed by [Jarrod] Bowen, [Lucas] Paqueta, Alvarez and Kudus. The latter scored a goal that we know he can do, but which the supporters in East London probably don’t believe yet.

“I don’t forget them. Kudus plucked the ball out of the air with his left – he is able to silently control a hand grenade – and pushed it into the far corner with the same foot.

“In the meantime, Alvarez was gesticulating like Cruyff; he intercepted balls and set up attacks like a Rijkaard. Nobody in this new Ajax is at their level.”

West Ham spent £35.4m when signing Alvarez and paid Ajax a further £38m for Kudus. Both players had emerged as targets for Chelsea, but the Blues ended up focusing on other players.

Moyes will be delighted that his club managed to sign the duo. Alvarez has helped West Ham move on from the departure of captain Declan Rice, while Kudus has provided the attack with additional threat as he can seemingly score from anywhere.

Alvarez and Kudus will be hoping to once again make an impact when West Ham come up against Brentford in the league on Saturday afternoon. After that, the East London side host Olympiacos in the Europa League on Thursday night.