For the first time since leaving West Ham United for Czech giants Sparta Prague in the January transfer window, Andy Irving is coming under fire.
Sparta suffered a humiliating 4-0 home defeat by AZ Alkmaar in the Europa Conference League last-16 on Thursday night, completing a 6-1 aggregate rout.
And as the perennially West Ham United-linked Troy Parrott broke the 30-goal barrier with a hat-trick over two legs, the local press pulled no punches. AZ sent Sparta to the canvas with a knockout blow delivered plumb onto their glass jaw.
Be honest – give us your initial grading and your current one 😂
For context, I was a C and now I am an A
On a night of many poor performances, Andy Irving stood out for all the wrong reasons.
Former West Ham United man Andy Irving slammed as Sparta thrashed
Czech publication iSport handed Irving a rating of just 3/10. The joint-lowest rating of any Sparta starter on the night.
“Of the three players in the midfield, he was the least impressive,” they write. “He often took corner kicks at the expense of [Kaan] Kairinen. Otherwise, he did not get much of a role.
“He gave a very lacklustre performance, and was soon replaced [in the 54th minute] by Lukas Haraslin.”
Irving spoke to Tomas Soucek before moving to Prague in January. As many managers have done over the years with the West Ham veteran and four-time Czech Footballer of the Year, Irving was moved into a more advanced, attacking midfield role against Eredivisie opposition.
It is fair to say the plan didn’t work.
Up against Kees Smit, the Barcelona-linked playmaker likened to Pedri by Dutch boss Ronald Koeman, and the ever-influential Sven Mijnans, he and Kairinen completed only 16 passes between them in the final third.
Irving’s Premier League past questioned as AZ Alkmaar progress
“Sparta takes players who either can’t handle playing so demandingly, or haven’t been used to it at all recently,” former Czech international Jan Moravek tells LiveSport, Irving arriving in the capital having played only 158 minutes of Premier League football in the first half of 2025/26.
“Some of those guys have played 15 games in the last two seasons. That’s insanely few. Although some came from Premier League clubs [also ex-Burnley defender Oliver Sonne], that doesn’t give them the status of a player in that competition if they don’t play it every weekend, don’t collect minutes in it.
What changes would you make to this team against Aston Villa? 🤔
Harsh on Todibo but we NEED to win
“I don’t want to diminish their quality, but Oliver Sonne and Andrew Irving didn’t make it there [in England]. If they looked good anywhere, it was Silkeborg in Denmark and Klagenfurt in Austria.”
AZ Alkmaar will now face Ukrainian giants Shakhtar Donetsk in the quarter-finals of a competition West Ham won as recently as 2023.
Fiorentina, left heartbroken by Jarrod Bowen’s extra-time winner in Prague, will face the only English side in the competition in Oliver Glasner’s Crystal Palace.
As for Parrott, talkSPORT claim that AZ want £25 million for a striker now on the radar of AC Milan. Niclas Fullkrug has failed to make his mark consistently in Italy, though there are reports that the Hammers loanee could start in place of the under-fire Rafael Leao against Torino on Saturday.
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