Seven Premier League games had gone by without Lucas Paqueta finding the net for West Ham United. Until Sunday’s morale-boosting, pressure-easing 3-1 victory over Newcastle, that is.
After Paqueta hit four in four for West Ham and Brazil in August and September, he lumbered through the whole of October without locating the target for club or country.
This, then, was a welcome return to form. Not just from Lucas Paqueta, but from West Ham United as a whole. Captain Jarrod Bowen implored his Hammers teammate to shoot more, and that advice came up trumps when Paqueta’s speculative long-range drive flashed past Nick Pope.
A first goal in seven, and a first win in seven.
Down in the reserves, though, the name of Emeka Adiele has been a far more common, far more consistent sight on the scoresheet.
A fortnight after Adiele hit a rapid-fire brace for West Ham during their 3-3 National League Cup draw with Sutton United, he was on hand yet again. Glen Lincoln’s Under-21s side are now unbeaten in six Premier League 2 matches.
They partly have the increasingly El Hadji Malick Diouf-esque Adiele to thank for that, after he burst into the box and clipped the ball over the advancing Wolves goalkeeper on Monday night, rescuing a 1-1 draw in the process.
On a day when George Earthy and Kryzstian Hegyi stepped up their post-injury returns, and Callum Marshall led the line, Adiele reached double figures for goals and assists. Impressive indeed, given that there are still fireworks sitting on the supermarket shelves.
Emeka Adiele shows Malick Diouf-like talents at West Ham United
It’s fair to say many West Ham fans like what they see from Emeka Adiele.
A rampaging left-back/left-winger with the speed and running power to thunder down the flank, the Hammers might just have found Malick Diouf’s protege. Adiele, capped six times by England at U18 level, certainly appears to possess many of the raw attributes displayed by the club’s £19 million swashbuckling Senegal star.
“We were just missing the final bit on the evening,” Lincoln says, indebted to Adiele’s determination to finish off a trademark burst into the box just shy of the hour mark. “We would have liked to have had maybe a little bit more control.
“I felt we started to get that in the second half. The game was very open and we had some good opportunities, so did they. I’d say probably on the face of it, if you look at the chances, it was probably a fair result.
“I thought we showed real character. I felt that the boys had a real great togetherness and resilience together. I think that came out in abundance.”
George Earthy and Kryzstian Hegyi are back with a bang
Lincoln is delighted to have the ‘outstanding’ George Earthy available again following an injury-interrupted start to the season. Earthy made his return from a hamstring issue last week as West Ham’s Under-21s beat Swindon Town in the EFL Trophy.
Talented goalkeeper Kryzstian Hegyi is another looking to make up for lost time after an injury which had kept him out since March. The Hungarian also returned to the XI against Swindon, marking his comeback with a brilliant late save.
This, Lincoln highlighting his reflexes again as West Ham kept Wolves at bay, was another eye-catching display between the sticks.
“It’s been fantastic for us to have the senior players with us. George returning from injury and Callum Marshall getting minutes today. They really personify those Academy values,” adds Lincoln, who is acting as interim head coach after Nuno Espirito Santo promoted Mark Robson to his senior staff.
“Both of them [Earthy and Marshall] have played senior football. I think their experience tells. You can see that. They helped to galvanise the group as well.
“It was a collective effort. We talk about being efficient and effective in and out of possession as a team. You need absolutely everybody, so I think we’ve done that well.
“Hegyi made some great saves at times, so all credit to him. I think it was just that doggedness, that resilience to not give them anything, minimise their opportunities as best we could and deny them when they did.”
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