After being brutally snubbed by Nuno Espirito Santo of late, West Ham goalkeeper Alphonse Areola is putting his skilled hands to good use elsewhere.
If you had lined up 1,000 West Ham fans six weeks ago and asked them to name the team’s best performing player, 999 of them would probably have said Alphonse Areola.
Despite the Hammers shipping goals for fun, Areola had arguably been the side’s most consistent and best performer, especially since the arrival of Nuno Espirito Santo.
But when West Ham threw away a 2-0 half-time lead to lose 3-2 at Chelsea, it was the giant French goalkeeper who paid the price.
Nuno showed Areola no mercy with West Ham snub
Mads Hermansen was threatening to be one of the worst signings in modern Hammers history after being frozen out following a disastrous start to his West Ham career following a £15m summer move from Leicester.
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Alphonse Areola of West Ham United during the Premier League match between West Ham United and Sunderland at London Stadium on January 24, 2026 in London, England.
Yet Nuno turned to the Dane as he brutally dropped Areola to the bench for the win over Burnley and the Hammers have not looked back since.
The decision has not gone down well in the Areola household.
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Alphonse Areola during Tottenham Hotspur v West Ham United - Premier League
Photo by Rob Newell – CameraSport via Getty Images
Nuno had previously explained his decision to swap Areola out for Hermansen as simply giving everyone in the squad a chance.
But after Hermansen impressed with another clean sheet against Bournemouth, Nuno finally admitted the real reason he has dropped Areola.
Demoted to a supporting role, West Ham star Areola has found a brand new hobby after the tough Nuno snub.
West Ham star Areola finds brand new hobby after Nuno snub
Being a top level Premier League and international goalkeeper clearly requires good hands.
And Areola is putting them to good use – by DJ’ing at a West Ham fan’s traditional boozer in Bethnal Green.
Locals at The Star of Bethnal Green got a shock when they spotted Areola’s lion’s mane hair ruffled by his DJ headphones as he mixed the tunes after West Ham’s draw with the Cherries on Saturday night.
The pub’s manager, West Ham fan Archie, posted pictures on social media, saying: “What if I told you Areola was currently DJing at my venue?
“The Star of Bethnal Green, the home of Areola’s first ever DJ set.”
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Mads Hermansen of West Ham United celebrates after teammate Tomas Soucek (not pictured) scores his team's first goal during the Premier League match between West Ham United and Manchester United at London Stadium on February 10, 2026 in London, England.
Archie used the extra exposure of having Areola DJ at the venue by urging people to support their locals rather than chain pubs.
“This is your daily reminder to SUPPORT INDEPENDENT PUBS,” he added.
“Your chain pubs might be cheaper, but they ain’t doing this.”
West Ham goalkeeper Alphonse Areola makes a stunning save to deny Wolves forward Tolu Arokodare in a Premier League match.
Photo by Rob Newell – CameraSport via Getty Images
Areola is West Ham’s man of many talents
Areola and his wife Marrion are not shy in showing off his musical talents.
The former Real Madrid and PSG goalkeeper showed off his DJ skills in a video posted on Instagram by his wife last week.
The couple have also shared footage of Areola playing the piano to a high standard previously too.
Areola, who earns £120k per week at West Ham, was linked with moves to Saudi and Turkey in January.
But the 6ft 5in star enjoys London life where his family are settled and is said to be in no rush to leave the Hammers for a club outside of the capital.
Although Areola has lost his place to Hermansen, he will not be rendered completely redundant on the pitch because, injury-permitting, he will be starting when West Ham play Brentford in the fifth round of the FA Cup on March 9th.
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