Jean-Clair Todibo became a symbol of Julen Lopetegui’s disastrous West Ham tenure for all the wrong reasons.
They say there is no smoke without fire and Jean-Clair Todibo has been surrounded by a cloud of it since he joined West Ham.
Signing the French centre-back from Nice was seen as the jewel in the crown of a magnificent window for West Ham last summer.
UEFA had blocked Man United from signing Todibo due to INEOS’ involvement in the ownership of both clubs.
But Todibo then looked set to join Italian giants Juventus instead.
The Italian giants were said to be Todibo’s preferred destination and West Ham looked to have no realistic chance of luring him to east London.
They came one of the most exciting twists of a busy summer window.
Technical director at the time, Tim Steidten, flew out to Nice and boarded the return flight with Todibo on board.
Lopetegui banised Todibo after West Ham bust-up
He signed on loan with an obligation to buy for £32m which was triggered after five Premier League starts – providing West Ham are not relegated.
West Ham fans were understandably excited by the capture of the a player Barcelona paid £20m for as a teenager.
Except Julen Lopetegui did not appear to share their enthusiasm.
Todibo was drip-fed into the side much to the frustration of supporters.
While the rest of the league was getting up to full match speed and fitness, Todibo was falling further behind having had little to no pre-season minutes.
Then when he did get a chance in the team he looked understandably rusty.
It was revealed that Lopetegui had doubts Todibo was physically ready for the Premier League.
His performances blew hot and cold as West Ham’s season went from bad to worse.
It all came to a head when the Hammers played Arsenal at home in November.
Physical altercation say Todibo exiled from Hammers squad
Trailing 5-2 at half-time of a crazy game, Todibo and Lopetegui were reportedly involved in a physical altercation when the manager singled the French defender out for criticism – just as he had done with Mohammed Kudus at Brentford.
It has been reported by The Athletic’s Roshane Thomas since that the altercation between Todibo and Lopetegui turned physical.
Lopetegui confirmed there had been an incident in the aftermath.
The 58-year-old described it as ‘nothing important’.
But it was important enough for Todibo to be banished to train with the Under 21s and removed from the squad for the dismal 3-1 defeat at Leicester which followed.
Todibo was in and out of the squad for the remainder of Lopetegui’s tenure.
He was reportedly part of a group of West Ham players demanding to leave if Lopetegui wasn’t sacked.
Now the former boss has opened up on that incident for the first time since leaving.
And five West Ham stars backed Lopetegui punishing Todibo after their bust-up.
That’s according to the man himself.
It is quite apt that Todibo made his first start under Graham Potter in the reverse fixture against Arsenal.
Five top West Ham stars backed Lopetegui punishing Todibo
The 24-year-old was one of the best players on the pitch, making Lopetegui’s handling of him even more questionable.
Potter was also seen sharing a big hug with Todibo after the famous win.
But the ex Wolves boss has told The Guardian he had the backing of several senior players in the way he dealt with Todibo.
Lopetegui says a core senior leadership group of captain Jarrod Bowen, Tomas Soucek, Michail Antonio, Edson Alvarez and Aaron Cresswell backed his decision to expel Todibo from the first team squad.
He also insists that kind of incident happens more often than people think.
But he seems to have had a dig at Todibo, saying those players represent the club in the right way.
“That’s much more normal than people think,” Lopetegui said in reference to his altercation with Todibo.
“And we (the coaching staff) had the group’s support (in the way we dealt with it), good leaders: Soucek, Edson, Cresswell, Antonio… the players who really represented the club well.”
Many West Ham fans felt Potter and his style would suit Todibo perfectly.
That certainly appears to be the case based on his and the team’s performance at Arsenal.
Now it is all about maintaining those standards for the rest of the season.
Although Potter is already targeting central defence as his first port of call for improvements in the summer.
Because West Ham are in early talks to seal a brilliant summer buy and it’s curtains for one star in particular.
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