Taty Castellanos was West Ham United’s goalscoring hero against Wolves – a status he shared with Konstantinos Mavropanos – but the January signing wasted little time highlighting the role of Pablo Felipe in a crushing Premier League victory.
They needed this.
And when we say ‘they‘, we are referring to both Taty Castellanos and Pablo Felipe, as well as West Ham United as a whole.
How impressed were you? 🤔
A graphic asking West Ham United fans to rate Taty Castellanos' performance vs Wolves/
Credit: Getty Images/Rob Newell – CameraSport
Castellanos’ impact had waned following a bright start in a Hammers shirt. Pablo had failed to score in ten matches, meanwhile, across all competitions. While that wait goes on for the ex-Gil Vicente talisman, Pablo did at least provide a first goal contribution in English football when he intelligently flicked the ball into the path of his grateful strike partner.
Taty Castellanos and Pablo Felipe combine in West Ham United win
“Very, very, very happy. We won!” a delighted Castellanos told Sky Sports. “Very happy. [Pablo] is a really, really good player. Very happy for the group and for the people [connected with West Ham].”
Castellanos has spoken about his admiration for Pablo, and how he feels more suited to life in an old-school strike partnership.
Nuno’s decision to pair both together up top certainly paid off on Friday as West Ham crushed Wolverhampton Wanderers 4-0 and sent Tottenham into the relegation zone for the first time in 18 years.
Taty Castellanos and Pablo during West Ham United v Wolverhampton Wanderers - Premier League
Photo by Mark Thompson/Getty Images
Mavropanos maintained his ‘excellent’ form at both ends of the pitch, meanwhile, with a clean sheet and the most unexpected of braces. The big centre-back joined Castellanos in scoring twice. This was the first time since 1997, against Sheffield Wednesday, that two Hammers had recorded braces in the same match.
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“It was clear, the message, to be calm. We just had to keep it how we wanted it. When we scored, we felt a little bit more comfortable with the ball,” says Mavropanos, who bulleted home a Jarrod Bowen cross to put a hitherto-uninspiring Hammers side ahead in the 42nd minute.
“Over a couple of months, we have been working really hard, and we are seeing it now on the pitch. We have to keep the same mentality, keep working hard, and we will make it.
“The effort of the guys was unbelievable today. If we keep working like this, we will keep getting more results like that.
“It’s an incredible result. This kind of game with this kind of atmosphere; this is exactly what we need for the rest of the season.”
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