Well played Areola !

Who do you think was man of the match yesterday?

Paqueta ?

Antonio?

Ward Prowse?

Not even close, it was in fact the unheralded Alphonse Areola

The French international has been very patient in waiting for his opportunity, having previously been the second choice keeper behind Fabianski.

But Moyes felt it was necessary to make the switch this season, with Areola being viewed as West Ham’s long-term goalkeeper. Areola, who joined on a permanent deal last summer, made 23 appearances in 2022-23, conceding 21 goals and keeping 10 clean sheets

Areola played against Bournemouth in our first game of the season, where he took Lukasz Fabianski’s place. It now looks like roles will be reversed this season with Fabianski now being the cup goal keeper.

Our Supremo’s decision proved to be the correct one when Areola saved Enzo Fernandez’s penalty kick with the scores level at 1-1. It is the first penalty he has saved in his West Ham career, having let in the previous four.

The saved penalty was a turning point in the game. Going into half time 2-1 down, I am sure heads would have dropped. A strong display in the second half saw us end up 3-1 winners thanks to a second-half goal from Michail Antonio and a late penalty from Lucas Paqueta.

Areola also showed his athleticism and skill during stoppage time when he made a fabulous save tipping Noni Madueke’s almost certain goal around the post.

It did not go unnoticed, as there was huge applause from the crowd when he was named man of the match.