‘You Want Legs, He’s Got Them’ – West Ham Man Hailed For Everton Display By Ex-PL Star | OneFootball

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Former Premier League midfielder Danny Murphy has admitted to being impressed with West Ham United‘s performance at Everton on Monday night and picked out Mateus Fernandes as someone who can run all day for the Hammers.

West Ham locked horns with Everton under the lights at the Hill Dickinson Stadium in what was a first game in charge for new boss Nuno Espirito Santo.

Nuno did see his side fall behind after just 18 minutes when Michael Keane scored for the hosts, but West Ham grew into the game.

They eventually levelled through a superb Jarrod Bowen strike in the 65th minute from just inside the box, as he curled the ball round Everton goalkeeper Jordan Pickford.

West Ham then looked the more likely to go on and win the Premier League contest, though clear-cut chances were few and far between.

The result nevertheless provided an encouraging start to Nuno’s spell in charge and Murphy was impressed with what he saw.

“I actually thought, other than the first ten, 15 minutes, their overall performance was very good”, he said on talkSPORT (29th September, 21:55).

“Their shape was good. They were brave. They got on the ball. They got forward together. They defended in numbers, worked to a man, tirelessly. I really enjoyed that performance from them.”

Murphy went on to pick out a number of players who caught his eye, including new boy Fernandes, whose energy made an impression on him.

“I thought Summerville was terrific, arguably their best threat. Fullkrug led the line nicely. Magassa looked really promising.

“And I have to say, Fernandes in the middle of the pitch – you want legs, he’s got them.

“I know he wants to attack more, but he put himself about.”

West Ham splashed the cash to bring in Fernandes from Southampton in the summer transfer window, but Graham Potter only had limited chance to use him before being sacked.

Despite a positive start for Nuno, Richard Keys has quickly warned that the former Nottingham Forest manager will regret taking the job.

Pointing the finger at the owners at the London Stadium, Keys believes Nuno will eventually be let down and leave feeling unhappy at his treatment.