HAVING THE FIRST LAUGH
AEK Larnaca 0 West Ham 2
David Moyes puts out an impressively strong side in Larnaca for this last 16 Europa Conference League away fixture against one of the weaker sides remaining in the tournament.
Only Flynn Downes is a surprising pick in the starting XI, with Paquetá and Scamacca on the bench, but it’s still proof that Moyes takes the competition seriously. Maxwell Cornet finally makes the cut for the squad, probably the best news of the night for Hammers’ fans.
AEK Larnaca surprise all and sundry by the confident way they play out the first half an hour, having much the better of the play, whilst nevertheless failing to create any genuine opportunities. Mark Noble is sporting the peakiest of blinding caps as he watches the action, West Ham creating the first genuine chance of the game on the half hour when Fornals sets up Lanzini, whose scuffed shot bounces wide of the post. A couple of minutes later Benrahma cuts through the defence, beating three defenders before hitting the shot straight at the keeper from wide on the left.
It’s a balmy night in Cyprus, the temperature at 18 degrees, as Michail Antonio, unchallenged, heads Benrahma’s pinpoint cross past Piric, ten minutes before half-time.
A few minutes later, Rice sets up Antonio for a second, his measured right foot strike around the shielded body of the last defender nestling comfortably into the top corner of the net. From another relatively straightforward move, the clear skill difference between the two sides is again emphasised and it gives Moyes the opportunity to have a relaxed half-time talk for the first time for some time.
Three minutes into the second half and Antonio almost completes an impressive and perfect hat-trick, after striking a perfectly weighted pass by Benrahma left-footed against the inside of Piric’s post, across the goal and away to safety. Only David Cross has ever scored a European hat-trick for the Hammers so that would have merited legendary Hammers’ hero status as well as making Antonio West Ham’s highest ever goalscorer in European competition. But not tonight, as the Hammers’ striker is substituted for Scamacca ten minutes later.
Jarrod Bowen comes closest to scoring just minutes after coming on in the second half with a curling shot that misses the far post by barely a foot. Omri Altman, after an impressive run, then crosses for Imad ‘Nigel’ Faraj to head straight at Areola, who grabs gratefully at the loose ball. It’s the first genuine chance that Larnaca have created, with less than half an hour of the game remaining.
With ten minutes left, Ivan Trickovski, probably the most enigmatic name on tonight’s team sheet, comes on for Larnaca, and almost immediately brings a decent late save from Ariola after a well struck volley from just inside the area. He is followed by Maxwell Cornet, back after a ludicrously long lay off, whose cameo features a neat interception and brilliant through ball for Lucas Paquetá, which the Brazilian sees well saved by Piric.
It’s a comfortable victory in the end for West Ham, but the weekend’s home fixture against Aston Villa still looms large, and although David Moyes now has a stronger squad of players to choose from, this will almost certainly be the main issue preying on the mind of the beleaguered West Ham manager.
13 Alphonse Areola, 3 Aaron Cresswell, 4 Kurt Zouma, 24 Thilo Kehrer, 41 Declan Rice (captain), 27 Nayef Aguerd, 8 Pablo Fornals, 9 Michail Antonio, 10 Manuel Lanzini, 12 Flynn Downes, 22 Saïd Benrahma
Substitutes: 7 Gianluca Scamacca, 20 Jarrod Bowen, 28 Tomas Souček, 14 Maxwell Cornet, 11 Lucas Paquetá
Goalscorers: Michail Antonio (2)
