A window on the past: the last time West Ham led the Premier League was in August 2006

London West Ham United, whose jersey is also worn by Czech legionnaires midfielder Tomáš Souček and right-back Vladimír Coufal, has successfully entered the next season of the English Premier League. In the opening round, the team won 4:2 at Newcastle United and then defeated Leicester 4:1 at home. After two rounds, they lead the oldest league competition in the world. The last time West Ham topped the table was in August 2006.

The Czech national team has received nothing but praise and recognition. Midfielder Soucek has earned the label ‘Nonstop’ for his unfaltering movement on the pitch, and Coufal has a similar position with the fans.

When he posted a message on his Twitter account saying, ” It is an honour to play for you,” the response from the stands was, ” He is on his way to becoming a legend.” And West Ham are having a wonderful time – leading the world’s richest league competition, the English Premier League.

The London team’s best-ever finish was in 1985/1986, when they finished on the bronze podium.

The Premier League was formed in 1992 and the Hammers have only led it once so far, at the start of the 2006/07 season, when they climbed to the top spot after two games – a 3-1 home win over Charlton and a 1-1 draw at Watford – on just one day in the incomplete round. However, they didn’t stay there for long.

The team was then led by coach Alan Pardew and went from one bad result to another. England’s representative dropped out of the UEFA Cup with Italy’s US Palermo (0: 3 and 0: 1), losing heavily on the domestic scene as well. In December, the club’s management decided to sack the coach, replacing him with Alan Curbisley. However, this did not solve the crisis.

Although the team featured some big names, with Argentine stars striker Carlos Tévez and defender Javier Mascherano being the biggest drivers, the London team continued to fall down the table.

The rescue was unexpected and rather shocking – a 1-0 victory at the field of champions Manchester United, scored by Tévez. In the end, West Ham finished in 15th place.

This year, everyone believes that such troubles will not occur. On the contrary, the club believes that West Ham, winner of the 19664/1965 Cup Winners’ Cup and finalist of the same competition in 1975/1976, will break through to the Champions League for the first time in its history, something it narrowly missed out on last season.

Czech legionnaires Soucek and Coufal are also expected to contribute to these goals.

Source: West Ham United