We take a closer look at Enner Valencia's performance against Manchester City
Enner Valencia has returned to the West Ham United team with a real bang since finally shaking off the injury which disrupted his first half of the campaign.
After scoring – and picking up a high-ankle problem – in the UEFA Europa League draw with Astra Giurgiu in July, Valencia endured a frustrating time as he battled back to fitness.
But after returning for a second time just before Christmas, he has hit the ground running with four goals in his last three games.
His performance in leading the line against Manchester City on Saturday was outstanding, as his double took the Hammers to the brink of completing a first double over the Citizens in over half-a-century.
It was a second brace of the fortnight for the Ecuador striker, who also notched twice in the 3-1 victory at AFC Bournemouth.
After a controlled finish and fantastic free-kick at the Vitality Stadium, Valencia showed yet more variety to his goalscoring against City, smashing home a Cheikhou Kouyate cross in the first minute, before gambling to latch onto a quickly taken Michail Antonio throw and poke past Joe Hart for his second.
Slaven Bilic was lavish in his praise for the striker after the game, highlighting his contribution away from just his goals and saying his all-round play was of the highest class.
The stats bore that out too, with football statistics website WhoScored.com rating his performance at 8.1/10, second only to Sergio Aguero on the pitch.
Valencia has a 100 percent hit rate with his shots, scoring from both of the efforts he had during his 87 minutes on the pitch.
Alongside an 80 percent pass completion record, three dribbles and three successful aerial duels, it was a fruitful evening for the West Ham No11.
It’s Enner Valencia week across our digital channels, so look out for plenty more content around the Ecuador striker!
Remember you can analyse the match for yourself with in-depth match stats in our Match Centre here.
After scoring – and picking up a high-ankle problem – in the UEFA Europa League draw with Astra Giurgiu in July, Valencia endured a frustrating time as he battled back to fitness.
But after returning for a second time just before Christmas, he has hit the ground running with four goals in his last three games.
His performance in leading the line against Manchester City on Saturday was outstanding, as his double took the Hammers to the brink of completing a first double over the Citizens in over half-a-century.
It was a second brace of the fortnight for the Ecuador striker, who also notched twice in the 3-1 victory at AFC Bournemouth.
After a controlled finish and fantastic free-kick at the Vitality Stadium, Valencia showed yet more variety to his goalscoring against City, smashing home a Cheikhou Kouyate cross in the first minute, before gambling to latch onto a quickly taken Michail Antonio throw and poke past Joe Hart for his second.
Slaven Bilic was lavish in his praise for the striker after the game, highlighting his contribution away from just his goals and saying his all-round play was of the highest class.
The stats bore that out too, with football statistics website WhoScored.com rating his performance at 8.1/10, second only to Sergio Aguero on the pitch.
Valencia has a 100 percent hit rate with his shots, scoring from both of the efforts he had during his 87 minutes on the pitch.
Alongside an 80 percent pass completion record, three dribbles and three successful aerial duels, it was a fruitful evening for the West Ham No11.
It’s Enner Valencia week across our digital channels, so look out for plenty more content around the Ecuador striker!
Remember you can analyse the match for yourself with in-depth match stats in our Match Centre here.