Playing alongside West Ham United teammates Declan Rice, Manuel Lanzini a ‘privilege’ – Flynn Downes
Flynn Downes has stated playing alongside West Ham United teammates Declan Rice and Manuel Lanzini is a “joy” and a “privilege”.
The 23-year-old was a star performer for the Hammers in a 1-0 win against RSC Anderlecht in the UEFA Conference League fixture at Lotto Park on Thursday, 06 October.
Talking after the match to the broadcaster, Downes stated that he is learning from playing alongside players like Rice and Lanzini.
“To be fair, playing alongside Dec is unbelievable,” he said.
“Manu as well and all the boys in the middle. It’s a joy. They’re all such good players, so I learn a lot from them, and it’s a privilege, really.”
Big performance
West Ham made a lot of new signings in the summer transfer window and perhaps the most low-profile one was the arrival of Downes as he joined the club from Championship outfit Swansea in a deal worth £12 million [Sky Sports].
Ever since his arrival, the 23-year-old is slowly but surely becoming one of the key figures at the club in the middle of the park and his performance on Thursday against Anderlecht has been nothing short of spectacular where he ran the show in the absence of Rice and Tomas Soucek.
The most pleasing aspect of the former England under-20 international was his game awareness where he was miles ahead of more experienced players like Lanzini.
With the Hammers’ season finally underway with an important win against Wolves on the domestic front, the fans as well as David Moyes will be hoping that the Brentwood-born central midfielder will continue improving and become a permanent member of the first XI.