SOUCEK MATES

Tomas is backing band of brothers to climb away from trouble once again

- BY STEVE JUDGE

TOMAS SOUCEK admitted to a feeling of deja vu from his early days at West Ham after being presented with a framed shirt to mark playing 250 games for the club.

The proud Czech midfielder was genuinely moved by the ceremony in the London Stadium dressing room.

"They invited my family," said Soucek. "I did not know about it, so I had my family in the changing room and there was applause and it was a really nice moment to spend together with my teammates and my family."

Soucek actually clocked up game No.250 against Tottenham in September, and was part of a joint celebration (right) with Jarrod Bowen, who played his 250th game on Saturday.

When Soucek made his debut, after initially joining on loan from Slavia Prague in January 2020, West Ham sat 17th in the table, with only goal difference keeping them out of the bottom three.