West Ham have come away arguably the biggest winners of the Premier League weekend by taking down Manchester United 2-1 in a highly-anticipated matchup that was jokingly referred to as “El Sackico” because of the increasing pressures on Julen Lopetegui and Erik ten Hag.
And in the end, it was the former Sevilla and Real Madrid manager’s side who came away with the three points, doing enough to hold a sagging Manchester United attack at bay while finding finishes from talented wingers Crysencio Summerville and Jarrod Bowen.
Coming into the 2024/25 season, West Ham had some attacking question marks as far as their regular starters go, because only Bowen’s position on the right wing was locked in as an every game starter, with Mohammed Kudus also set as a starter, albeit the role itself not entirely clear under Lopetegui.
West Ham had purchased an out-and-out No. 9 in big man Niclas Fullkrug from the Bundesliga, but he’s yet to really find his footing due to injuries. The other big signings were a veteran attacking player in Carlos Soler and a highly talented young left winger in Summerville, who had the eye of several top Premier League clubs before ultimately selecting a move to West Ham.
Summerville had flashed his potential in previous games, including two key passes off the bench in his debut against Aston Villa, but he never got an extended run of minutes outside of a doomed 54-minute start in a blowout loss to Chelsea.
Crysencio Summerville is ready for more
On Sunday, Summerville was the best player on the pitch for West Ham, coming off the bench in the second half to light a fire under the Hammers and change the complexion of the game.
Summerville finished the afternoon with the opening goal in the 74th minute, three key passes, and three dribbles completed in one of the best halves of football by a Premier League forward this season.
With Lucas Paqueta out of commission and Mohammed Kudus suspended, the left wing post was there for either Soler or Summerville to take, and it was Summerville who took it, showing a lot more urgency and initiative as someone with the athletic tools and means to force the issue.
West Ham had two starters in their front three nailed on: Bowen on the right and Kudus either on the left or, more ideally, through the middle where he can directly score and impact play by knifing through the heart of a defense.
Now with Summerville’s sprightly legs winning one-on-ones on the outside and him showing that goal-scoring touch – the same one that brought the Dutchman 20 goals in the Championship for Leeds last season – it’s becoming clear that the third slot in the West Ham attack has been filled.
West Ham have an excellent front three on paper
Coming into the season, West Ham were wondering who would step up as the third head of the triumvirate, whether that would be Fullkrug imposing himself at striker or the young and, at the Premier League level, unproven Summerville.
A front three of Summerville, Kudus, and Bowen looks incredible on paper, especially as Summeville works through his growing pains and more of that dynamism comes to the fore in the form of goals and assists.
It’s a dynamic, fluid front three that can interchange and interconnect, playing attacking football as it was meant to be played in the modern Premier League, giving West Ham a basis from which to win tough games and, eventually, push for European football again.
Maybe I am too optimistic after one half, but Summerville was highly touted for a reason and put up the kind of numbers – 2.6 key passes, 4.0 combined dribbles completed and fouls drawn per game – that can translate well into Premier League success.
The managing editor of The Trivela Effect, Kevin has 15 years of experience in digital media. He covered Real Madrid from 2019-2022 for The Real Champs as a site manager. You can contact him at the site’s official Twitter handle @TrivelaEffect or via the site’s official email thetrivelaeffect@gmail.com.