Fists clenched, chest pumped, Konstantinos Mavropanos knew what this meant. Not only for West Ham United, but for their bitter Premier League rivals Tottenham Hotspur.
After what was the umpteenth block of a performance which warrants immediate entry into the annals of Hammers history, the coming of the full time whistle saw Dinos Mavropanos as relieved as any of the 60,000 or so home fans in a stadium rocking – this time – for all the right reasons.
How Tottenham could do with a centre-half as committed, as imposing, as proactive as he, former West Ham United and Spurs goalkeeper Joe Hart wondered aloud on BBC’s Match of the Day.
Finish this sentence!
Mavropanos' performance is the best by a West Ham defender since… ?
You can keep your Argentine World Cup winners and your Dutch speed demons. Mavropanos has never played better in a West Ham shirt. To a man, Nuno Espirito Santo’s backline was immense from minute one to minute, what, 96?
Unfortunately for those in the north of the capital – those based in N17, anyway – neither Cristian Romero nor Micky van de Ven appear to have even a fraction of Mavropanos’ heart, discipline or will between them.
Joe Hart thinks Tottenham need a player like West Ham United’s Konstantinos Mavropanos
“What a point it is for West Ham,” said Hart, who played 33 games for the two London giants towards the end of his goalkeeping career. “I am sure that will just keep their momentum going.
“They look really united. You look at Tottenham at the moment and you don’t think you are going to get that sort of performance, which is what is required when you are struggling down at the bottom.”
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Hart paid particular notice to one of the four shots Mavropanos blocked on an evening in which he also recorded ten clearances while even scoring a goal; The first centre-back to score for West Ham since 2023, away to Arsenal.
Mavropanos was poleaxed by a thunderous Erling Haaland volley to the face. He carried on though. Of course he did.
“Sometimes, it’s about taking those blocks,” added Hart. “Like the Mavropanos one to the grill, that’s what you need to be doing.
“Whether the other [relegation-threatened] teams are capable of that remains to be seen.”
Hammers have ‘massive advantage’ over Tottenham and Nottingham Forest
Since beating Igor Tudor’s flailing, free-falling charges on January 17th, West Ham have accumulated 13 more points than Tottenham.
After leapfrogging Nottingham Forest, at least until Vitor Pereira’s side host Fulham on Sunday at 2pm, a likely defeat away to Liverpool will see West Ham and Spurs enter matchday 31 level on points.
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“It’s a massive psychological advantage, when you’ve been in the relegation zone for so long and you see yourselves out of it…” said Ashley Williams, the former Swansea City captain and Everton stalwart.
“Those Forest and Spurs players are going to bed tonight knowing they have to win tomorrow. They had to before, but now they absolutely have to – especially Forest.
“You don’t want to see yourself beneath that line.”
Mavropanos ends his 86-game Premier League wait for a goal
The last time a centre-half got himself on a Premier League scoresheet for West Ham, funnily enough, came via Mavropanos’s sizeable noggin.
Scoring in a 2-0 win away to Arsenal and an equaliser against Manchester City; he certainly picks his moments.
“I think from the whole team, the effort was amazing because we didn’t let them create something really dangerous in open play,” a delighted, presumably still-dazed Mavropanos said after notching what was only a second goal in 95 games.
“Obviously, they had also some chances from set-pieces when we were defending deep, but I think our defending was amazing. We knew that it was going to be a tough game, as the opponent is really tough, and it’s an important point for us.”
“We’ve trained a lot on corners and it was finally a moment for me to score because it’s been a while,” the former Arsenal youngster beamed, inadvertently putting his old employers nine points clear at the summit.
“I’m really happy that I did it in this important game, and especially at home, because it’s my first goal at home. I hope that I gave a lot of happiness to the fans as well.
“We had a really tough first half of the season, but we worked so hard, and now we can show it on the pitch as well. We just want to keep it up and keep the momentum.”