Here is a quick quiz question to make your Thursday go that little bit quicker; Who was the last West Ham United player to score a direct free-kick in the Premier League?
It wasn’t Jarrod Bowen. Or Lucas Paqueta for that matter.
And it’s not James Ward-Prowse either. The £30 million misfit may have a reputation for his deadly dead-balls – Chelsea’s Cole Palmer labelled him the best in the business before his West Ham United career really started to tank under Nuno Espirito Santo – but Ward-Prowse has not actually scored a direct free-kick since his Southampton days.
The answer, then, is Emerson Palmieri. And what a fabulous strike it was, winning West Ham’s Goal of the Season award for 2024/25.
Emerson won West Ham’s Goal of the Season award in 2024/25!
But what is the BEST free-kick you have ever seen a Hammers' star score?
As the club’s Under-18s cruised past Leicester City on Wednesday, it was the turn of another left-back to showcase his own qualities from a set-piece situation. 17-year-old Joe Scanlon had already provided four assists for his new club in nine league outings.
This, though, was quite the way to open his account.
Joe Scanlon emulates Emerson Palmieri with West Ham United free-kick special
The visitors were already 1-0 up when they were awarded a set-piece with seven minutes on the clock.
Scanlon stepped up and caught the Leicester keeper by surprise, locating the bottom corner and doubling the advantage in the blinking of an eye as the Hammers stormed into the Premier League Cup semi-finals.
“It shows that some of the work that goes on within the group, not just now, but all the stuff over the last couple of years, has certainly come to fruition. We’re really happy to see those types of goals. Even with Joe’s free-kick, it’s a little bit different. It showed some creativity as well,” assistant coach Ricky Simons tells the club’s official website.
“For this group to be in a semi-final is brilliant. This group has always been quite a tight-knit group, from the U12s and upwards. So for them to get these moments as a collective is a really exciting one.
“This group deserves to be in the semi-final. They’re a really good group. It’s a solid group of first years and U16s coming up underneath that. This is an exciting moment for the group and the U18s in general.
“It was a good performance. The boys really dug in and went through some tough moments. Getting into the semi-final is something that the boys and the club should be proud of.”
Ricky Simons delighted as West Ham cruise past Leicester City
The aforementioned Chuk Obi scored twice on the night, and then set up a late clincher for Joel Kerr. Coming just days after Andre Dike continued his fabulous form against West Brom, the Hammers U18s side have now scored four goals in successive matches.
“I think it was a similar sort of situation on Saturday against West Brom, where we flew out of the traps,” adds Simons. “So for the boys to do it again is something that we’re really happy with. We said at the start, both teams have generally started really quickly in their U17s games.
“Going 2-0 up in quick succession was exciting, but it also came with a little bit of pressure, conceding the goal [from Leicester to make it 2-1 just before half-time] changed the feel of it. We’re happy with how the boys are starting games at the moment, and certainly how we ended it was excellent as well.
“We knew at half-time they were going to throw a little bit more at us, which they did. The shift in momentum was there a little bit, and we had to suffer. I think in most cup games you have to suffer, you’re going to go through those moments. For this group, with some younger players in there, having these moments is so important for their development.
“It was a really mature performance from a really young backline with some younger players in midfield and even an U15 in there as well. So we’re really happy with how they responded.”
Described by the West Ham website as a ‘highly technical left-back who is eager to join the attack’, Joe Scanlon has shown real versatility and tactical intelligence of late. Under-18 coach Lauris Coggin has occasionally used him as an inverted full-back, drifting in to create overloads in the centre.
Scanlon signed a scholarship contract with West Ham over the summer.
Talking of left-backs meanwhile, reports this week claim that West Ham are looking at Frankfurt’s Nathaniel Brown.
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