Manuel Lanzini was outstanding once again in victory at Crystal Palace
Saturday’s victory at Crystal Palace was notable for another fine attacking performance from two of the Hammers’ summer arrivals.
But while Dimitri Payet will attract most of the headlines after notching his fifth Barclays Premier League goal of the season, it was perhaps a player who goes a little more under the radar who was the biggest driver behind the victory.
Manuel Lanzini has been in outstanding form since breaking into Slaven Bilic’s starting line-up in late August and football statistics website WhoScored.com had him as Man of the Match at Selhurst Park with a rating of 9.4.
It was close to perfection from the No28, who scored the crucial second goal with just two minutes remaining and then laid on Dimitri Payet’s game-sealing third in stoppage time.
Lanzini has shown a useful knack of popping up in the right place at the right time to net important goals – he marked his Hammers debut with a strike at Astra Giurgiu in the UEFA Europa League, followed that with a goal on his full Premier League debut against Liverpool and then secured all three points on Saturday.
It was a performance of the highest class from Lanzini, who attempted 90 passes in the game – the most by a West Ham player since Mark Noble made 92 passes against Aston Villa in November 2011.
The Jewel, as he was nicknamed in his native Argentina before heading abroad to play his club football in the Middle East a year ago, completed 93 percent of those passes to help keep the Hammers ticking as an attacking force against the Eagles.
He also made a game-high six dribbles, took on four shots and attempted three tackles in a 90 minutes that really showed his value to the team.
Analyse the game for yourself with in-depth match stats in our Match Centre right here.
But while Dimitri Payet will attract most of the headlines after notching his fifth Barclays Premier League goal of the season, it was perhaps a player who goes a little more under the radar who was the biggest driver behind the victory.
Manuel Lanzini has been in outstanding form since breaking into Slaven Bilic’s starting line-up in late August and football statistics website WhoScored.com had him as Man of the Match at Selhurst Park with a rating of 9.4.
It was close to perfection from the No28, who scored the crucial second goal with just two minutes remaining and then laid on Dimitri Payet’s game-sealing third in stoppage time.
Lanzini has shown a useful knack of popping up in the right place at the right time to net important goals – he marked his Hammers debut with a strike at Astra Giurgiu in the UEFA Europa League, followed that with a goal on his full Premier League debut against Liverpool and then secured all three points on Saturday.
It was a performance of the highest class from Lanzini, who attempted 90 passes in the game – the most by a West Ham player since Mark Noble made 92 passes against Aston Villa in November 2011.
The Jewel, as he was nicknamed in his native Argentina before heading abroad to play his club football in the Middle East a year ago, completed 93 percent of those passes to help keep the Hammers ticking as an attacking force against the Eagles.
He also made a game-high six dribbles, took on four shots and attempted three tackles in a 90 minutes that really showed his value to the team.
Analyse the game for yourself with in-depth match stats in our Match Centre right here.