In its history of 120 years, West Ham United have seen many ups and downs. During this period, many great players have played for this club, but who was responsible for taking the club to such heights? Here we are taking a look at the 10 greatest players for the East London club….
West Ham United are a club with a long and storied history, one of London’s most iconic clubs and – more pertinently to this conversation specifically – home to some fantastic players over their 126-year history.
Various trips to and from the top flight in their long history have left them with a long list of greats and club legends to flick through…so we’re going to do that.
10) Julian Dicks
There are not many West Ham legends bigger than Julian Dicks. Dicks was one of the finest defenders of his time.
Despite being a terrific defender, he was also recognized for his wonderful goal-scoring ability. Julian netted around 65 goals for West Ham United across all competitions, putting him in the 17th position in the club’s all-time top goal scorers, which is an incredible achievement for a defender. Julian is arguably the fiercest and passionate footballer that the world of football has ever seen.
Having said goodbye to West Ham in 1999, he also bade farewell to football for some time but the pull of Hammers eventually brought the veteran back into the business. In 2014 he returned to West Ham United as a manager, helping his club reach the final of the London FA Capital Women’s Cup.
9) Martin Peters
Nicknamed ‘The Ghost’ for his exceptional quality to drift anonymously into goal-scoring, Martin Peters is perhaps the most entertaining goalscorer in the game of Football.
A free-kick specialist, known for his versatility as he has played in almost every position for his team, even as a goalkeeper. During his golden phase, he was extremely furious, versatile, consistent, good in the air, and an amazing athlete. His performances for West Ham United impressed Alf Ramsey, just in time for him to be a part of England’s topmost victory. He made his debut in 1966. The ‘Ghost’ made a huge impact and played the most vital role in the team. In total he played 260 times across all competitions, scoring 76 goals.
8) Michail Antonio
Antonio is blessed with physical attributes that make them one of the best all-rounded forwards at the moment. He can play as an out and out number 9 with his hastening and finishing skills. With his physique, athleticism, technique, and commitment to the game-the Jamaican are one of the best all-rounded players in the business. He has smashed 51 goals in 164 appearances in the Premier League games.
Although he played for a very short period at West Ham, Antonio made a very impressive remark during the time he has spent with the club. In 2016-17, he was named the ‘Hammer of the Year’ for his terrific performances throughout the season.
7) Billy Bonds
Six foot two, eyes of blue, Billy Bonds is after you. This was one of the famous headlines used by the journalists when the great Billy Bonds used to play ruthlessly for his team. Billy spent over 20 years as a West Ham player, making a record 800 first-team appearances, followed by an enchantment as a coach and 4 years as a manager for the club.
“He was still playing at 41,” recalled Sir Trevor. “He put the rest of us to shame. A family man who enjoyed country walks, ornithology, and Thomas Hardy novels, he became a warrior on the pitch. no one took liberties with Billy Bonds. He was the best captain I have played under and spent a brilliant time with him on and off the field”.
6) Mark Noble
His loyalty and majestic performances for the club have earned him the nickname “Mr. West Ham”. Noble has been synonymous with WHU since the London-born made his debut for the club at just 17 years of age in 2004. Mark has scored 61 goals in 550 games across all competitions. He was considered as one of the best central midfielder players in the world alongside Manchester United legend Bruno Fernandes.
He has played more Premier League matches for West Ham than any other player since its inception. Mr. West Ham has also won two Hammer of the Year awards, one of the only ten players to reach that milestone. In 2017, he became the first-ever WHU player to feature in 300 Premier League matches.
5) Geoff Hurst
The man who holds the record for an astounding hat-trick in the World Cup Final at Wembley in 1966 was an iconic football player. Geoff began his career at West Ham United, where he smashed 242 goals while featuring in 500 matches. He continued to be an extraordinary and versatile player for the West Ham team who were to go on to smell the victory in the European Cup Final in 1965.
Despite having the country’s most influential player, West Ham was to struggle with consistency throughout Geoff’s golden phase and further he was sacrificed for continued entertaining football. Hurst remained with the club until 1972. After delivering some mouth-watering performances and representing in almost 500 games for West Ham, he was picked by Stoke at the start of the 1972-73 season.
4) Lukasz Fabianski
A goalkeeper of fierce character, Lukasz is arguably West Ham United’s greatest shot-blocker of all time. Born on 19th April 1985, Fabianski, a star goalkeeper who played for Premier League club West Ham United was a prolific character. He is the first pole to play first-team football for West Ham, was installed as the first-choice keeper at the start of the 2018-19 season, and was one of the most influential characters in the team.
Apart from WHU, he has represented a lot of other clubs where he has given some amazing performances. He has performed astonishingly well throughout his career and saved some exceptional goals against some top-quality teams. The Polish goalkeeper made a staggering 285 appearances and kept 74 clean sheets in that period.
3) Frank Lampard
A very innovative and skillfully blessed box-to-box midfielder, Frank made his debut for West Ham United in the year 1995. He is one of the nine players, and the only midfielder, who scored more than 150 goals in the Premier League. Lampard won three Premier League titles, the UEFA Champions League, the UEFA Europa League, four FA Cups, two Football League Cups.
During his time at West Ham United, Frank was known for his attacking approach that was the heart of the WHU team for years. He was tactically aware and an extraordinary reader of the game and did every possible thing that his team could have asked for. Lampard was a mainstay in the team between 1994-2001 and was considered as one of the greatest midfielders of his generation.
2) Bobby Moore
England’s captain and the ‘Golden Coin’ of the team during the 1960s, Bobby Moore was an absolute legend of the game. He was one of the greatest defenders that the world has ever produced. Moore featured in more than 500 matches for West Ham United including victories in the FA Cup Final in 1964 and European Cup Final in 1965, respectively.
Alf Ramsey, England’s Manager, made Bobby the captain of the team and he went on to lead the team in 90 odd matches for England. Alf Ramsey described him as “My captain, my leader, my right-hand man. He was the spirit and heartbeat of the team. They are a cool, calculating footballer I could trust with my life. He was the supreme footballer, the best I ever worked with. Without him, England would never have won the World Cup.” In 1964, he was named the Footballer of the Year and BBC Sports Personality of the Year in 1966.
1) Paolo Di Canio
When you mention the names of a prolific Premier League goalscorer, the one name that pops up into every football fan’s mind is Paola Di Canio.
The world still remembers his extremely famous scissor-kick volley which he scored against Wimbledon and that is by far the best goal scored by any player in the English top flight. He was a ferocious forward player, who netted over 100 goals in round 500 fixtures.
In 1997, he was named SPFA, Player of the Year, and West Ham’s Player of the Season in 2000. Despite having a brilliant career, he was often amidst controversies. In 1998, he received an eleven-match ban for misbehaving with a referee and attracted negative publicity over his allegiance to fascism.
If football were a religion, rooting against your favorite would be a cardinal sin. But in the end, it is what it is. Fantasy football is fun. It’s amusing.
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