West Ham United entertained AZ Alkmaar at the London Stadium earlier tonight as they looked to secure a win in the first leg of their UEFA Europa Conference League semi-final tie. The Hammers made a solid start to the game but conceded the opening goal in the 41st minute when Tijjani Reijnders found the back of the net. David Moyes’ men went into the half-time break 1-0 down on the scoreline.
Said Benrahma equalised for the home team from the penalty spot in the 67th minute. Michail Antonio completed the turnaround for West Ham just nine minutes later when he got his name on the scoresheet. The contest ended with the Hammers earning an impressive 2-1 win at home.
Let’s take a look at how each West Ham United player performed during the match against AZ Alkmaar.
GK: Alphonse Areola – 5.5/10
Areola made a couple of solid saves at the back but should have done better to prevent Reijnders’ goal in the first half.
RB: Thilo Kehrer – 6/10
He did his best to keep things solid at the back and didn’t do much going forward.
CB: Kurt Zouma – 7/10
Zouma was brave when defending inside his half and was good on the ball as well.
CB: Nayef Aguerd – 7/10
He performed his defensive duties well and did enough to restrict the opposition to just one goal.
LB: Aaron Cresswell – 6/10
He struggled to make an impact in both halves and had an uneventful outing tonight.
CM: Tomas Soucek – 6.5/10
Soucek was bright and inventive in the opposition half but struggled to protect his backline.
CM: Declan Rice – 7/10
The English talent passed the ball well from midfield and was a positive influence at both ends of the pitch.
RW: Jarrod Bowen – 7/10
Bowen caused a few problems for the opposition defenders and deserves credit for winning the penalty that Benrahma scored.
CAM: Lucas Paqueta – 6/10
Paqueta showed some moments of promise but was lackluster in the final third.
LW: Said Benrahma – 8/10
He was always looking to threaten the opposition goal and managed to score his penalty in the second half.
ST: Michail Antonio – 7/10
Antonio showed his poacher’s instincts by scoring in the 75th minute.
Substitutes:
ST: Danny Ings – 6/10
He didn’t offer much after coming off the bench.
LW: Pablo Fornals – N/A
Fornals didn’t get enough time to make an impact.
