West Ham achieved their largest-ever victory in European competition by convincingly defeating Freiburg, overturning a first-leg deficit and securing their spot in the quarter-finals for the third consecutive time.
Before the match, David Moyes referenced West Ham’s comeback win against Sevilla at the same stage of the competition two seasons ago, and this time, the Hammers’ manager achieved a similar outcome.
However, unlike the tense night against Sevilla, where victory was only secured in extra time, West Ham swiftly wrapped up the win within an hour against a struggling Freiburg side.
The scoring started early, with Lucas Paqueta leveling the tie after just nine minutes by sliding in unmarked to convert Tomas Soucek’s near-post flick from close range.
Jarrod Bowen extended his excellent season with his 18th goal of the campaign, putting West Ham ahead on aggregate just after the half-hour mark.
Veteran defender Aaron Cresswell then scored his first goal in nearly two years as the Freiburg defense afforded him too much space to shoot.
The game was effectively over, but Mohammed Kudus added to the scoreline with two goals in the final 15 minutes, sealing West Ham’s biggest win since Moyes returned to the club in December 2019.
Under Moyes, West Ham have now accumulated an impressive 26 European victories across their three campaigns. Prior to this run, they had only achieved 25 victories in their history, including in the Intertoto Cup.
Their quarter-final opponents will be revealed on Friday at lunchtime.
Bowen presses England claims
Kalvin Phillips, an England candidate, had a rough day as he was left out of both David Moyes’ and Gareth Southgate’s starting lineups in the span of three hours. Despite this, Bowen kept building what is beginning to appear to be a strong case for a spot at Euro 2024.
Bowen’s pre-tournament form dip persisted throughout the Premier League season, preventing him from competing in the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. But 2022–2023 concluded with celebration as he scored the game-winning goal late in the Europa Conference League final, securing his team’s spot in the European tournament for a record third time.
It’s amazing that he scored his first goal in Europe this season in the first half.
Bowen was forced to play a wide role to make room for Michail Antonio’s comeback. Despite this, he showed the presence of mind to move across the area, shrug off a defender, and then shoot low with his left foot into the bottom corner.
It was the type of moment he has provided so many times this season, and it is difficult to see how Southgate could leave him out of the celebration when he leads Germany in attack.
Bowen is a player that can score goals as well. The former Hull City player has an incredible work ethic and a selfless nature.
It was the 27-year-old who provided the assist that allowed Cresswell to take a touch before driving in his first goal since April 2022.
After getting sent off in the Europa League semi-final against Eintracht Frankfurt two years ago and then spending the Europa Conference League final on the bench, 34-year-old Cresswell has more reason that most to want to make an impact this season.
Kudus has been an inconsistent presence this season but his late double was pure class.
His first was a driving run down the middle of the pitch that Freiburg were powerless to stop, as he beat two players and curled a shot home. His celebration, grabbing a plastic stool to sit on, was as memorable at the effort itself.
The second was a rocket, which Freiburg keeper Noah Atubolu had no chance of keeping out.
A good night for Moyes
This was one of those nights when you start to wonder why Moyes and his future at West Ham are causing such a stir.
The Scot showed courage in his choice of players, and with Antonio he gave Freiburg’s defense a threat they could not handle.
Paqueta drifted out into space and inflicted massive damage, while Bowen and Kudus performed admirably out wide.
Despite the early kickoff, West Ham fans turned out in number for the match, and Moyes was greeted with cheers from all sides of the stadium when the final whistle blew. The same fans gave a similar response.
This hasn’t always been the case. A “Moyes Out” banner was visible in the away end when the Hammers lost at Nottingham Forest. The team’s eight-match winless streak came to an end three weeks ago with a 4-2 victory against Brentford, which included a 6-0 home loss to Arsenal.
All in all, though, it was a fun evening shared by all, with more to come. That will undoubtedly cross Moyes’s mind when he considers his options at the end of the season.