West Ham beat Burnley 3-2 at the London Stadium on 9 November, as Nuno Espirito Santo has left the Hammers in a better place heading into the international break.

Nuno made a big call against the Clarets, leaving Soucek out of the team, as Freddie Potts impressed again in defensive midfield after starting in West Ham‘s win over Newcastle beforehand.

Soucek has been slammed for his performances this season, but the stats are starting to prove how crucial a signing he’s been since David Sullivan brought him to E20.

The midfielder is now on the verge of breaking a Premier League record, too.

Tomas Soucek is now joint-highest Czechia goalscorer in Premier League history

Soucek joined West Ham for £17m in July 2020, as he may have proved himself as one of Sullivan’s best pieces of business.

West Ham have achieved European glory with Soucek at the club, and even though his best days may be behind him, he is still producing the goods on the field.

Soucek’s goal against the Clarets has now tied him with Patrik Berger for the most goals scored by a Czech representative in the Premier League at 38.

List of the highest scoring Czech Republic players in Premier League history

as a “massively important” player for West Ham after they beat Crystal Palace 2-0 at Selhurst Park in 2024, and that has only continued.

Sullivan hasn’t got many things right over the years, but Soucek was truly a masterstroke in the grand scheme of things, given how unknown he was.

Soucek now has his hardest competition yet at West Ham

Soucek now has to battle Potts for a starting spot under Nuno, as the youngster is yet to put a foot wrong this season.

The problem for Soucek is that Nuno seems to have found his perfect balance in midfield, as Mateus Fernandes and Lucas Paqueta are emerging as crucial for the Hammers.

Soucek can still be a useful option off the bench, as he proved vital against Burnley, coming on late to find pockets of space and capitalise on tired defenders with his physicality.

However, there’s still a lot of football to be played, and he will get chances to start in the future.

Nuno will be hoping all of his players come back unscathed from international duty, especially Soucek, who has been called up for his country’s important 2026 World Cup qualifying game vs Gibraltar on 17 November.

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