West Ham midfielder James Ward-Prowse said he felt he made a “dream debut” for West Ham against Chelsea on Sunday afternoon.
The win was then wrapped up in stoppage time as Lucas Paqueta fired a penalty past Robert Sanchez for 3-1, ensuring Ward-Prowse got his West Ham career off to the best possible start.
James Ward-Prowse said: “It was a fantastic day, a dream debut in many ways. It was an incredible atmosphere and a real honour and pleasure to play in this stadium in front of so many fans, and to get a positive result was huge for us and you could see how much it meant to everybody at the end. We were playing against a very good Chelsea team who dominate the ball and have a lot of possession, so we had to ride our luck at times, which we did, but I thought we earned that through the hard work and togetherness we showed and you could feel around the place that there was a growing belief throughout the game and it was no surprise we went on to get the third goal.”
David Moyes said of Ward-Prowse’s performance: “We want midfielders who look to make assists and score. We’ve got him in now and he’s already made a difference with his set-piece quality today. I’m really pleased for him. He’s settled in well and he looks a really good lad for our dressing room.”
Ward-Prowse is West Ham’s second signing of the summer following the arrival of Mexican defensive midfielder Edson Alvarez, who joined from Ajax for around £34million and came off the bench for the final 15 minutes against Chelsea. Both players have settled into life at West Ham quickly, with Ward-Prowse being shown around his new home by close friend Danny Ings, who spent three years playing at Southampton before moving to Aston Villa and then, in January, to the Hammers.
James Ward-Prowse said: “It’s been an incredible week and I can’t speak any more highly of the club, and the player care team who have done a fantastic job. Everyone has looked after me, Ingsy has shown me the ropes and how it goes and it’s just a fantastic environment to be in and I’m absolutely honoured to be here. It’s a fantastic group of lads and the good feelings in training are coming through to the matchday, as well.”
