There was no shortage of potential Man of the Match candidates after West Ham kept Michael Carrick’s in-form Manchester United at arm’s length at the London Stadium.
Well, until Benjamin Sesko flicked the most audacious of 96th minute equalisers past a despairing Mads Hermansen to leave the home supporters feeling that Nuno Espirito Santo was ‘robbed’ of a famous victory on home soil.
Barely anyone in a West Ham shirt dipped below an 8/10 on a night which proved that the still relegation-threatened Londoners proved they are capable of keeping one of the Premier League’s best attacking sides relatively quiet.
Soucek the scorer but did anyone outshine him for West Ham?
Pick your Man of the Match!
El Hadji Malick Diouf excelled up against Amad Diallo. On a night when Tomas Soucek became the most prolific Czech player in the competition’s history, Axel Disasi and Konstantinos Mavropanos protected Hermansen superbly.
The inclusion of Freddie Potts in place of Callum Wilson also had the desired effect as West Ham United limited the Red Devils to just three shots on target before Sesko’s moment of inspiration.
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Tomas Soucek wins West Ham United’s Man of the Match vote
Over 20 per cent of Hammers News readers selected Disasi as our Man of the Match. A further 17 per cent of the vote went to Aaron Wan-Bissaka. Not quite as imperious as he was on his return to Old Trafford in December, but the former Man United right-back did deny Luke Shaw the opener with a fine goalline clearance.
In the end, though, it was Soucek who came out top.
In his co-commentary role for TNT Sports, Rangers and Scotland legend Ally McCoist named Soucek his Man of the Match after watching the evergreen box-crasher ghost into the Man United penalty area and feather a delightful finish past Senne Lemmens.
“I’ve got to give it [to Soucek]. He’s been outstanding,” McCoist said. “I have enjoyed [Crysencio] Summerville, but Tomas Soucek, dear me…
“Brilliant. He gets in the blind side of [Lisandro] Martinez, he can’t see him. It’s the deftest of touches. It’s a wonderful run, it’s a wonderful pass.”
The man who overtakes ex-Liverpool, Portsmouth and Aston Villa ace Patrik Berger as the Premier League’s most prolific Czech marksman also finished top of the Hammers News poll.
Nearly half of our TalkingPoints users [42 per cent] picked Soucek over a host of other candidates.
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Nuno Espirito Santo pays tribute to ‘amazing’ Soucek
No matter who is in charge, no matter how much is spent, every manager always comes back to Tomas Soucek. After five successive games on the bench either side of Christmas, the long-serving former Slavia Prague captain is – once again – one of the first names on the West Ham team sheet.
As Nuno explained on Tuesday night, Soucek still possesses that unrivalled ability to pop up in the right place at the right time. An ability unrivalled not only at West Ham but across the majority of the Premier League.
“Having Tomas Soucek in the middle of the park allowed us to contain them better. [Furthermore], Tomas has this quality where he is always able to find space and score,” Nuno said.
“And beside that, he did an amazing job during the game.”
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