Kyle Walker-Peters might have left the field at half-time as Graham Potter rang the changes, but he still had a very good view of the game’s defining moment when West Ham United defeated Everton in the Premier League Summer Series.
On a night when many of West Ham’s fringe players caught the eye – Callum Marshall and Luis Guilherme excelled, while Freddie Potts showed he is ready to ‘step up’ – two of the club’s elder statesmen made the decisive contributions.
Lucas Paqueta is open to staying at West Ham as light shines at the end of a long, dark tunnel. And, with the Brazil international expected to be exonerated from those spot-fixing charges, a goal gifted to him by Everton glovesman Mark Travers will do his self-confidence the world of good.
Paqueta prodded home gratefully after Travers made a mess of punching clear Max Kilman’s lofted ball into the box. There was nothing fortuitous about Niclas Fullkrug’s thumping winner just past the hour mark, though.
And Kyle Walker-Peters, making his first appearance as a West Ham United player, could not help but be impressed.
Photo by Michael Reaves – Premier League/Getty Images for Premier LeagueKyle Walker-Peters hails West Ham United matchwinner Niclas Fullkrug after Everton clash
Fullkrug had already produced a few eye-catching touches and the odd turn of pace before giving the Hammers a lead they would not relinquish in Illinois.
Chasing back to re-claim possession, the Germany international then picked up the ball from Paqueta, hared towards the edge of the box and fizzed a laser-guided strike into the bottom corner with his supposed ‘weaker’ foot.
“Ridiculous finish! I didn’t even expect him to shoot!,” Walker-Peters smiled at full-time. “Yeah, like an arrow. Ridiculous finish.
“That’s what you want from your striker.”
Despite a debut season interrupted by injury, Niclas Fullkrug is determined to stay at West Ham and make up for lost time.
The former Borussia Dortmund star feels El Hadji Malick Diouf’s arrival will help – an attack-minded wing-back who loves an early cross from deep – while the versatile Walker-Peters should also be tasked with providing a creative outlet from the flanks.
Walker-Peters delighted with debut win as Fullkrug promises happier times
Signed on a free transfer after his Southampton contract expired, Walker-Peters played the first half against Everton before making way for 2025 Hammer of the Year Aaron Wan-Bissaka.
“Finally! I’ve been wanting to do that since I joined,” Walker-Peters adds when asked how it felt to make his first appearance in the claret and blue shirt. “Happy to be finally up to the level of fitness to play 45 minutes.
“These tournaments and these tours, it’s always good to play a similar level of opposition.
“I think we were good. We dominated the ball, that is something we are really working on. I think our reaction to going a goal behind was really important as well. I think the gaffer spoke about that.
“Going a goal down and reacting the way we did, staying patient, calm, keeping the ball and creating chances, that’s something he wanted from us. And we managed to turn the game around.”
As for Fullkrug, the big friendly striker’s infectious grin has been a common sight throughout the pre-season tour so far. A positive presence off the pitch, certainly, and potentially a game-changing one on it too when fully fit.
“Right now, the vibe in the group is so good,” Fullkrug beams. “There’s a lot of love in the air. We like each other xso much and we spend so much time with each other.
“The coach works with us not only on the pitch, but also to be a better group, to be a team and to be a family. We’re all enjoying our time together – in London, in Germany and now here in the US – and we’re starting to see the impact of what we’ve been doing.
“On the pitch, I think we’ve improved a lot. We still have work to do and not everything will be perfect right now, so we have to be patient. But I think we’re seeing what we’ve been working on all coming together.
“For my goal, it felt good of course, but the most important thing in that moment for me was not the goal. It was more about how we all went to the second ball. We had three players close to the second ball. Even if it was not an easy one, everyone was fighting for it and trying to win it back.
“I think that reaction showed a lot, and then obviously I was happy to put it in the net.”