Garth Crooks has praised West Ham’s Ukrainian winger Andriy Yarmolenko after his superb goal against Aston Villa.
The 32-year-old came off the bench to open the scoring against Villa, and his celebration was understandably emotional amid all the turmoil in his home country at the moment.
Crooks was clearly shaken by the moment, naming Yarmolenko in his Premier League team of the week.
“At the time the substitution was made, my immediate thought was: ‘Do you have the mental strength to deal with Premier League football with everything else that needs to be going on in your life?'” Crooks said.
The Ukrainian international not only rose to the occasion, but his goal was magical. Football has a habit of throwing up moments like this, but seeing an entire stadium rise to its feet in admiration of Yarmolenko’s goal and force of purpose is the best football can do.
“This was an excellent win for the Hammers and it keeps them in the hunt for a top four finish.”
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