Slaven Bilic might have lost out to Nuno Espirito Santo for the West Ham United job, but no one was happier than him to see Mateus Fernandes, Tomas Soucek and Crysencio Summerville inspire a vital Premier League victory over Burnley.
On Saturday afternoon, as the Hammers won successive London Stadium matches for the first time in thirteen months, a battling and fully-deserved victory showed that not only is the future bright, but simultaneously that there is also no substitute for experience.
The fresh-faced midfield pairing of Freddie Potts and Mateus Fernandes ran the show. Snapping into tackles, popping passes around the pitch at will. Disrupting the usually metronomic influence of the returning Josh Cullen.
But, as a relieved Nuno Espirito Santo said after his second win at the helm, Callum Wilson and Tomas Soucek ‘won us the game’ in the end.
Popping up in the right place at precisely the right time, what Wilson and Soucek lack in terms of long-term potential or pizzazz, the two veterans make up for with a penalty-box potency few in a Hammers shirt can match.
Slaven Bilic, who famously led West Ham United to a record Premier League points haul back in 2015/16, is confident enough now to predict a finish of 17th or above. With Soucek, Fernandes, Lucas Paqueta, Crysencio Summerville and Jarrod Bowen, Nuno’s is a squad with more final-third thrust than most down the bottom of the table can dream of.
Slaven Bilic hails Mateus Fernandes as he predicts West Ham United survival
Of course, the phrase ‘too good to go down’ is enough to send shivers down claret and blue spines.
The 2002/03 side which contained the likes of Joe Cole, Paolo di Canio, David James and Michael Carrick failed to stave off the drop despite amassing 42 points, after all.
Should West Ham replicate their current points-per-game average for the remainder of the campaign, they will finish on just 34. Though this does not account for further improvements under a coach who took over at Nottingham Forest in similar circumstances and took them into the Europa League a year-and-a-half later.
“They are going in the right direction. They was always enough quality there,” Bilic tells talkSPORT.
“Especially in midfield and on the wings. Like Jarrod Bowen, he is a top player. They have Summerville, Paqueta, they have Soucek, they got Fernandes from Southampton.
“Good players. Really good players.
“I think once they click – and it is still early days for Nuno – and they got confidence and everything that comes with that, they are going to grow and they are going to be safe.”
Bilic praises West Ham’s midfield as Nuno lauds Soungoutou Magassa progress
Bilic’s glowing assessment of West Ham’s midfield options is in stark contrast to the concerns aired by Tony Cottee, Tony Gale and co earlier in the campaign.
Following that dismal loss at Sunderland on the opening weekend, Cottee hit out at a West Ham side whose lack of athleticism in the centre of the park had been ruthlessly exposed by Sunderland’s tenacious triumvirate of Granit Xhaka, Habib Diarra and Noah Sadiki.
Two months on, the ‘sensational’ Mateus Fernandes is growing in stature and influence, Freddie Potts has cemented his place at last, while Nuno is happy with Soungoutou Magassa’s progress as the former Monaco youngster adapts to life this side of the Channel.
Furthermore, Nuno appears keen to add another pacey, dynamic number eight to his ranks in January. Hammers News can confirm that Nuno wanted Feyenoord’s Quinten Timber at Nottingham Forest and could now renew his interest.
PSV Eindhoven ace Ismael Saibari is a target, too.
“The midfielders work hard and they are complementing each other,” Nuno told BBC Sport after Magassa’s eye-catching cameo against Burnley.
“Tomas came in, Magassa came in, I think in the middle of the park we have a lot of good options and all the boys are doing really well.
“Arriving to the Premier League for any player is really difficult to adapt, to show all these things, it takes time,” Nuno said when asked if Magassa needs to be drip-fed into English football as he adjusts.
“We have a lot of situations like that [of Magassa] with players who we need to be patient with but at the same time to recognise their quality and talent is there for us to exploit.”
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