West Ham defender Konstantinos Mavropanos put in an excellent performance as Greece secured a 2-1 victory over England on Thursday evening.
The Euro 2004 winners had never won at Wembley prior to the game but they more than deserved the three points against their below-par opponents, who opted to field Jude Bellingham as a false nine.
Undoubtedly motivated by the death of former Sheffield United player George Baldock, who tragically lost his life in the build-up to the match, Mavropanos and his teammates were outstanding to a man as they made it three wins from three in their Nations League group.
The West Ham star has not exactly had a great start to the season, having lost his place to Jean Clair Todibo, but his performance against England showed what he can do when he’s at the top of his game and is given the backing of the manager Ivan Jovanović.
Mavropanos’s game in numbers
The 26-year-old delivered a superb 90 minutes against England. In addition to having a goal disallowed, he made 4 clearances, 2 tackles and 1 interception.
Mavropanos also won all three of his ground duels and 2/3 of his aerial duels. It was a consummate all-round display that will prove many of the doubters wrong.
The defender showed why West Ham wanted to bring him back to England
Mavropanos joined the Hammers from Stuttgart for £19m at the start of last season but he had played in England before, having spent four years at Arsenal prior to being sold by manager Mikel Arteta in 2022.
He wasn’t deemed good enough for the Gunners at the time but his performance against England does give us a glimpse at what he can do when he’s playing at his very best. Hammers fans will be hoping he can replicate this type of performance for his club after stifling the attack of the 4th ranked international team according to FIFA’s official World rankings.
Like Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta, West Ham supporters have had their doubts about Mavropanos. His displays against the likes of Manchester City and Chelsea left a lot to be desired. However, if he can replicate the confidence and determination he showed whilst playing for Greece on Thursday, he could well kickstart his career at the London Stadium which had shown a great deal of promise under former boss David Moyes who signed the Greek international.
Find out who is in West Ham’s first-team squad for the 2024/2025 season here
