The Great Entertainer is ready to torment Louis Van Gaal’s suffering troops.
Dimi Payet’s name will be the most famous of the 22 that start at at Old Trafford this afternoon – when could we last say that on a trip to Old Trafford?
The weight of expectation doesn’t faze him. Indeed the French wizard relishes such moments particularly as he missed the League game and says: ““It’s one of the stadiums I adore and I was very disappointed not to play there earlier in the season because of injury.
“I watched their game at Liverpool on Thursday. It was very intense, so I hope they’re tired after that.”
He is very happy at Upton Park declaring: “I’ve been incredibly welcomed by the coaches, my team-mates and the fans. And, whether we’re playing home or away, I can really feel the love from the supporters.
“I still try to treat football as a game even if there are other considerations at stake, especially economic ones.
“I try to put on a show, while being effective, because the fans come to be entertained by beautiful play. I didn’t expect things to go this well, so I try to enjoy every day because I know how hard it was to get to this point.”
The love he feels from the fans is reflected best in the song dedicated to him and although he’s honoured he doesn’t agree with one line concerning himself and Zinedine Zidane.
The 28-year-old who grew up wanting to play like Brazil star Ronaldinho and said: “That might be the fans’ opinion, but, as someone who has seen Zidane play many times, I wouldn’t say I’m better than him.”
However, whether he is or not, at his best he could so easily be the difference between the two sides come 4pm.
It’s not just this game. Payet is the biggest name in the premier league right now. Player of the season despite 2 months of it injured. When did West Ham last have the premier league player of the season?
Every year I have wanted us to have a game changer with sheer class,
Now we have Payet who fills the bill BUT
We have Lanzini,Valencia Moses Emineke Sakho, all capable of turning games in seconds,
How ever much effort Carlton or Vaz Te put in it was not quite the same
Can’t believe this has happened in a few months,
From also runs to true contenders,
What a great side we have and in Payet a true world class player he might not get in the French Squad but any great manager out there would have him playing in there top 11