West Ham United will need to evoke the remarkable spirit of Sevilla at London Stadium next Thursday if they are to continue their historic European trip.
Following last night’s contentious defeat against SC Freiburg, David Moyes’ side must now overcome a one-goal deficit in order to advance to the UEFA Europa League quarter-finals next month.
But the Hammers manager might take heart from the fact that almost precisely two years ago, he found himself in the similar situation following a last-16 first-leg defeat in Spain.
When the Scot returned to Stratford in March 2022, he witnessed his team mount a valiant comeback against the competition’s record seven-time winners to reach the final eight.
“Our 2-0 win over Sevilla was one of our best nights at London Stadium, and let’s hope we can replicate it next week,” Moyes remarked following the 1-0 loss at Stadion am Wolfswinkel.
“What matters most is that we now have home advantage for the second leg, and I’m hopeful the supporters will rally behind us and produce another amazing atmosphere.
Tonight was always going to be tight, and while it wasn’t a bad effort, we were disappointed in the first half and didn’t have our shooting boots on.
“I’d praise Freiburg for starting brightly, but our players gave the ball away too much, while we also conceded a terrible goal.”
Indeed, with both teams failing to pull up any trees on the border of the Black Forest, this match appeared to be heading for a goalless draw until substitute Michael Gregoritsch capitalised on some poor Hammers defending to break the deadlock with only nine minutes remaining.
The match ended in controversy when Spanish official Alejandro Hernández denied West Ham a stoppage-time spot-kick after a lengthy Video Assistant Referee review and pitch-side monitor analysis of Noah Weißhaupt’s clear handball, after the Freiburg substitute came under pressure from Tomáš Souček.
“I really can’t see why the referee didn’t give us the penalty,” said an astounded Moyes, who also had an on-the-field dispute with the Spaniard before the final whistle.
“The moment you raise your arms over your head, you put yourself at risk, and if the ball comes into contact with your hand, most people believe you will be punished.
