West Ham United’s ‘Great Escape’ of 2006/07 was ignited by the dynamite brilliance of Carlos Tevez but would not have been possible without the rock-solid foundations provided by Rob Green, Danny Gabbidon and James Collins.
Two decades on, as the Hammers leapfrog Tottenham into 17th with a 4-0 obliteration of Wolves, Mads Hermansen, Axel Disasi and Konstantinos Mavropanos recorded a clean sheet while an enigmatic Argentine striker produced the goods at the other end.
Taty Castellanos completed his first Premier League brace, putting West Ham United out of reach in the blinking of an eye. If his brace was unexpected, then what word would you use to describe Konstantinos Mavropanos’?
Taty and Dinos with braces, but did anyone else stand out more?
The Greek giant has been doing a very passable impression of Collins or Gabbidon at their belligerent best in recent weeks. Fittingly, as Rob Green watched on during a joyous East London Friday night, Mavropanos became the first centre-back since Collins to score twice in one game.
Rob Green hails West Ham United’s Dinos Mavropanos – Axel Disasi partnership
“It was the only bit of quality in the whole of the first-half from West Ham, and it was needed!,” Green told Sky Sports. “Wolves were the better side [in the opening 42 minutes]!
“But you don’t have to play well. You have to nick the goal, and it was a moment of real quality.”
Green felt that Mavropanos resembled a ‘classic centre-forward’ when he drifted into space and thumped his header past Jose Sa. Centre-back partner Axel Disasi played his part in that opener; making himself a nuisance and drawing Wolves defender Yerson Mosquera towards the back post.
“[Mavropanos is] massive for West Ham,” adds Green. “He’s had his role really simplified by the manager, [along with Disasi] who has been a godsend for the club. Keep it simple and go from there.
“He’s built his confidence and become such a big part of this team.”
How impressed were you? 🤔
Mavropanos has been ‘exceptional’ over the last month or so. If he is playing the best football of his West Ham career – comfortably so, undoubtedly so – then the winter arrival of Disasi means Nuno arguably boasts the most effective West Ham defensive partnership since the nostalgia-seeped days of Craig Dawson and Kurt Zouma.
Nuno Espirito Santo calls Mavropanos West Ham’s ‘warrior’. The previously-maligned powerhouse follows Nikola Milenkovic [Nottingham Forest], Willy Boly [Wolves], Nicolas Otamendi and Shkodran Mustafi [Valencia] in reaching career-best heights under Nuno’s stewardship.
Nuno the centre-back whisperer.
“It was clear, the message, to be calm,” a beaming Mavropanos said at full-time. “We just had to keep it how we wanted it. When we scored, we felt a little bit more comfortable with the ball.
“Over a couple of months, we have been working really hard, and we are seeing it now on the pitch. We have to keep the same mentality, keep working hard, and we will make it.
“The effort of the guys was unbelievable today. If we keep working like this, we will keep getting more results like that.
“It’s an incredible result. This kind of game with this kind of atmosphere; this is exactly what we need for the rest of the season.”
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