Paví’s first goal for the Club
The Hammers’ second goal, and what proved to be the winning goal against London City Lionesses, was scored by Manuela Paví. As significant as it was for the Irons, meaning they picked up another three points in the Women’s League Cup, it also marked her first goal for the Club.
The Colombia international latched onto a misplaced pass by Georgia Brougham before thrashing the ball into the left corner, beyond the helpless dive of Grace Moloney.
Having come close against Brighton & Hove Albion in the Barclays Women’s Super League a week prior, you could see the joy in Paví’s face when the ball hit the back of the net, before she unleashed her iconic Spiderman celebration in the corner of the Hayes Lane pitch.
Her teammates were quick to run over and bask in the glory with her, as they knew how hard she had worked for that first goal.
“I’m so happy for her [Paví], she deserves it,” Viviane Asseyi said after the victory.
“She works hard every day and as a striker it’s always good to score. I don’t know if you saw but I was celebrating for her.”
Asseyi at the double, again!
Asseyi was amongst the goals once more for the Hammers in the Women’s League Cup, adding to her quick-fire double she chalked up against Portsmouth last month with another brace in the competition at Hayes Lane on Sunday.
The attacker opened the scoring after 14 minutes when she latched onto Marika Bergman Lundin’s through ball before calmly slotting the Hammers ahead, one-on-one with Moloney.
After Paví restored Rehanne Skinner’s side’s lead, Asseyi was quick to show her excellent composure again. This time, she received a pass from substitute Riko Ueki and, with an ice-cool touch, took the ball past Moloney before slotting it home - shades of her winner against Leicester City two weeks ago.
The France international sits top of the Women’s League Cup scoring charts and will hope to add to her tally against Southampton after the international break.
Hammers lead the way
With two wins from two matches, Skinner’s outfit have put themselves in a healthy position ahead of the final round of fixtures in Group C.
Second-placed Southampton and third-placed London City both have three points to their name and require high-scoring victories after the international break to dethrone the Hammers at the summit.
As well as being one of only three sides with two victories from as many games, the four goals on Sunday, combined with the six we put past Portsmouth in the first round of fixtures, puts the Irons at the top of the scoring charts.
The next highest-scoring team is Liverpool, who have netted six times in the Women’s League Cup this term.
Away day success
The victory at London City on Sunday marked the Hammers’ first win on the road in all competitions this term.
An away day victory has certainly been coming, after a narrow loss at Brighton & Hove Albion following a terrific fightback, a late defeat at Tottenham Hotspur and draw at Everton, and Skinner will be delighted to have that first away win on the board.
The Irons have one more away trip left before the Christmas break, which comes in the Barclays Women's Super League at Aston Villa on Sunday 15 December.
Marika shines in return to starting XI
Bergman Lundin made her second start of the season in all competitions for West Ham at Hayes Lane - her first since the 6-1 rout over Portsmouth - and played all 90 minutes of the fixture, capping her performance off with an assist for Asseyi’s opener.
After Dagný Brynjarsdóttir intelligently won possession back for the Hammers, the Swedish midfielder was quick to play an incisive pass to Asseyi, who calmly dispatched underneath Moloney.
The 25-year-old, who joined the Irons in January 2024, further proved a threat in the attacking third as she unleashed two fierce efforts, one in each half, that tested Moloney in the London City goal.
Heading into the international break on a high
The 4-1 dispatching of London City sees Skinner’s side head into the second international break of the season on a high, and they will look to continue that form in their final three games before the Christmas period: at home to Crystal Palace (WSL) and Southampton (Women’s League Cup) before a trip to Aston Villa (WSL).
Bergman Lundin alluded to this in her post-match interview, as she said: “It’s good that we can show that we’re capable of scoring a lot of goals, and it’s nice to do it just before the international break as well.
“It sends us all into the break feeling really positive, and I hope we can come back and continue that feeling in the final three games before Christmas.”
The Hammers have 12 players that could be in action for their respective countries next week, with Kinga Szemik, Amber Tysiak, Kirsty Smith, Jessie Stapleton (on loan at Sunderland) and Oona Siren all looking to book their place at UEFA Women’s Euro 2025.
