National media shares what West Ham United ace Vladimir Coufal did amid ‘anger’ in Albania v Czechia
Vladimir Coufal was “not calm” in Czechia’s 0-0 stalemate against Albania on Saturday after “objects repeatedly flew at him” from fans in the crowd.
The defender played the full ninety minutes of the clash and was on the receiving end of a fair amount of abuse from the home fans.
Czechia media outlet iSport reported via their website (17 November) about what the defender did to try and wait for the “anger” from the home fans to subside.
“Jan Kuchta, who was warming up by the sideline, incited the fans of the Albanian team,” they wrote.
“When the ball reached him on the line, he held it and let the opponent run to him. He laughed at that. That’s why the lighter flew at him.
“Vladimír Coufal, the Czech defender, was not calm either. “Objects repeatedly flew at him as he took corner kicks. That’s why he backed away from the ball, waiting for the anger to subside”.
West Ham United need Vladimir Coufal back in one piece
Coufal may have lost his starting spot in the West Ham squad thanks to the arrival of Aaron Wan-Bissaka in the summer but that doesn’t mean he’s still not an important part of the team.
While he may no longer be as involved as he’d like to be, his experience and ability are both invaluable assets to Julen Lopetegui’s squad and fortunately for the Hammers, things didn’t go any further than a few objects being thrown at the right-back.
Coufal’s performance for his country against Albania was strong and could have perhaps even made Lopetegui question whether the right-back should be starting.
Many expected Lopetegui’s men to be challenging for the European places this term but instead, that’s been far from the case.
Coufal’s reintroduction into West Ham’s starting XI could help provide the Hammers with a stronger attacking threat as that isn’t one of the strongest areas of Wan-Bissaka’s game.
Only time will tell what the future holds but one thing is for sure, the Spaniard will be happy that Coufal hasn’t returned to the London Stadium injured.
In other West Ham news, Ruud van Nistelrooy has been backed to go for the Hammers’ managerial hot seat if Julen Lopetegui is sacked.
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