Vladimír Coufal spoke to West Ham’s official website before the 4-0 FA Cup win over Doncaster earlier today, where he made an interesting revelation.
The 11-cap Czech Republic international shared that he’s been disappointed about one thing since arriving in east London.
Coufal said: “I’m very excited for that moment and I hope COVID will be over as soon as possible. It’s strange because I came to England and I still didn’t get to play in front of the fans, so it’s a little bit crazy for me and I’m a bit disappointed about it.”
We completely sympathise with the 28-year-old on this – it must be so difficult for the right-back right now.
To arrive in England, having never played football here before, is a big step to make, let alone doing so during a global pandemic.
Usually, being serenaded by the supporters with endearing chants, or just their support in general, could help a new recruit feel more welcome.
However, Coufal has just had to get his head down and work hard, without thousands of devoted Hammers spurring him on.
Even without supporters, the defender has been phenomenal since arriving from Slavia Prague in a £5 million deal.
As WhoScored shows, Coufal has three assists in 15 Premier League starts this season, while also registering 2.8 tackles and 1.5 key passes per game.
These numbers are very, very impressive.
If Coufal’s game tends to become enhanced by fans spurring him on, then who knows how good he’ll be when the London Stadium is packed out.
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