‘When I was a small boy, I was a fan of Liverpool and I liked Steven Gerrard, but now I am a Hammer!’ Vladimir Coufal says it will be a dream come true to make his Premier League debut for West Ham
- Coufal joined West Ham from Slavia Prague for £5.5m this week
- He was signed in time to make his Premier League debut at Leicester
- The defender was in the Czech Republic team that beat England last year
Vladimir Coufal grew up with a soft spot for Liverpool as he idolised Steven Gerrard, but his now his aim is to add his name to West Ham’s growing list of Czech mates.
Manager David Moyes completed the £5.5m transfer of the highly decorated international defender in time to make his Premier League debut at Leicester on Sunday.
And Coufal, 28, will relish the challenge and said: ‘I have enough experience from the Europa League and last year the Champions League, which are a similar level to the Premier League, so I am not afraid of this level.’
New signing Vladimir Coufal is set to make his West Ham debut at Leicester on Sunday
It is not an idle boast as he won two Czech titles with Slavia Prague and was also in the Czech Republic team that beat England last year.
The Slavia signing follows in the club’s proud list of Czech players including goalkeeper Ludek Miklosko, Tomas Repka, Radoslav Kovac and current midfield star Thomas Soucek.
‘As a child, it was a dream of mine to play in the Premier League,’ he added. ‘When I was in Slavia Prague, I saw every Premier League match on the TV and it’s unbelievable now I’m here. When I was a small boy, I was always a fan of Liverpool and I liked Steven Gerrard, but now I am a Hammer!’
‘I know Ludek Miklosko is a big legend here and I know Tomas Repka is too. I played with Radoslav Kovac in Slovan Liberec and now he trains Opava, where I played when I was 18 years old. Now the club has Tomas Soucek, another big player from Czech Republic, and I hope I will be similarly successful like these four players.’
Moyes is unlikely to be at the match in the Midlands as he continues his quarantine recovery from coronavirus but he has remained active in tactics and team selection. He still wants to make further signings to boost his squad and is adamant star man Declan Rice will not be leaving the club before tomorrow’s transfer window shuts.
The £5,5m signing from Slavia follows in the club’s proud list of Czech players
The Czech defender grew up with a soft spot for Liverpool as he idolised Steven Gerrard