West Ham 2-0 Sevilla: Carlton and Joe Cole revel in their old side’s historic Europa League victory

West Ham toppled Sevilla to advance to the Europa League quarter-finals for the first time in their history on Thursday night – leaving club heroes Carlton and Joe Cole speechless.

David Moyes’ men headed into the all-important second leg trailing 1-0 after losing last week’s opener, in which Munir fired home the only goal of the game for the Spanish club.

Yet inside a boisterous London Stadium, Tomas Soucek cancelled out Munir’s strike by levelling the aggregate score 39 minutes into Thursday’s decider. 

The tie then reached extra-time as both sides continued to search for the goal that would take them into the last eight, and with eight minutes remaining it was Andriy Yarmolenko who found it.

The Ukraine star, who has been playing for West Ham amid his country’s troubling war with Russia, tapped home from close range to spark emotional celebrations and book their quarter-final spot.

The two Coles were overjoyed when Yarmolenko stroked in the winner, with the BT Sport pundits captured on camera celebrating wildly along with presenter Jules Breach.

Andriy Yarmolenko netted the second-leg winner for the Hammers deep into extra-time

The Ukraine star was playing for David Moyes’ men amid his country’s war with Russia

And the former Hammers duo were quick to heap praise on their old club and Yarmolenko for pulling off something special.  

Joe Cole: ‘If the Hollywood script writers wrote this they’d get laughed out of town. Yarmolenko through what he has been through to score the winning goal, it’s beyond Hollywood. It’s beautiful. I’ve never seen a stadium as rocking as this in all of my life-time, I promise you. I’m lost for words.’

Carlton Cole: ‘I’m still lost for words, I was almost crying. I didn’t even cry for my two sons’ birth. I was almost in tears, honestly. This is massive, I can’t believe it. Yarmolenko, what a man, what a story. What a player.’

JC: ‘This goes beyond football, he had to go get his family out of the country, and he’s done it for his team-mates and himself. This is romantic football and this is what we all love about it. I’m blown away by it. David Moyes deserves everything he gets. The renaissance man, they called him the Moyesiah.’

West Ham heroes Joe and Carlton Cole (left and right) were ecstatic when Yarmolenko scored

The BT Sport duo were seen celebrating his all-important goal in jubilant fashion

CC: ‘This is some serious magician (Moyes), I just don’t understand how we’re in the quarter-finals. We’ve dreamed about this, this is crazy, I just can’t believe it. I can’t say much more. Well done, the lads.

JC: ‘I’m so proud, it was a privilege speaking to Dec and Nobes. The master and the apprentice. Before and after of 15 years at West Ham, that’s what that is. I’m so happy for them. There is going to be a one day lockdown in east London tomorrow as nobody is going home.’

CC: ‘It’s the top, in my time here, even the play-off final doesn’t come close to this.’

JC: ‘This is different, it feels different, you have to think of the journey they’ve been on. Coming from Upton Park, coming here, not really being settled. Not really feeling at home. I said a few years when you get a new home, you have to make it your home, and have a few parties.’

CC: ‘Now the fans know why we’re here, we’re here for these sort of nights.’