Collison delights Zola as West Ham move up to seventh

After watching his West Ham United team pick up three valuable points against a Manchester City team that has cost millions and millions to put together, Gianfranco Zola hailed the performance of his team as ‘superb’.

The 1-0 win moves the Hammers up to 7th in the Premier League with more and more people talking about the possibility of Europe. This is something that the football odds would never have suggested a couple of months ago, but now it is a very realistic aim.

This is credit to Zola and his players who have applied themselves so well in recent weeks. Yes, there has been a bit of luck along the way, but let’s be honest – West Ham were due some weren’t they? The fact that the physio room hasn’t had too many new arrivals recently is so, so important.

As already mentioned, Zola was very happy with his team after yesterday’s win. He has said that it was a ‘real team display’ and one which left the whole squad ‘buzzing’ in the changing room after the game. There is a real sense of unity right now isn’t there?

One man in particular caught Zola’s eye during the 90 minutes though and that was home-grown talent Jack Collison. The West Ham boss described the young midfielder as an ‘unbelievable’ player who is getting ‘better and better’ with every game that he plays.

The 19-year-old has been operating in a relatively unfamiliar right wing role of late, but has excelled in the position and Zola says that his versatility is something which makes him such a valuable player to the squad.

The Italian went on to say that he feels ‘very lucky’ to have a young player with Collison’s ability, undoubted passion and fantastic attitude in his playing staff.

As we all know, Collison scored the goal that secured the points against Manchester City and it was exactly the result that his performance deserved. He is becoming a regular for Zola and at this moment in time, the team are benefiting from his involvement.

As for what Collison could achieve in the future, well who knows what football can throw at him? Personally, I expect him to be a fixture in this West Ham team for years to come. Then, on the international stage he will add significantly to the four caps he has already won for Wales.

In terms of the team as a whole, things are looking very good right now. The win against Mark Hughes men ended a run of five games without a win and it puts the European bid right back on track.

As things stand, West Ham sit a point above Wigan and two points above Fulham in the race for 7th place. This means that football betting is backing them to achieve their aim of playing in the UEFA Cup next season, with a win against Steve Bruce’s side on Wednesday likely to emphasise this even further.

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