Diafra Sakho arrived in a blaze of goals and left amid claims of a mystery injury after a dispute about a £50,000 appearance bonus and his diminishing first-team opportunities.
Somewhere in the middle, there were various on-off transfers, a troublesome back injury and a motoring mishap which ended with his Lamborghini planted in a garden hedge.
Three-and-a-half years at West Ham were anything but dull for Sakho and his endgame started before Christmas when Sportsmail revealed his simmering discontent at being on the fringes of the team.
Sakho believed he was being overlooked because a clause in his contract entitled him to a £50,000 appearance bonus whenever he started a Premier League game and £25,000 if he came on as a substitute.