BBC pundit Garth Crooks was left seriously impressed by West Ham attacker Felipe Anderson after his side’s 3-2 win over Crystal Palace on Saturday.
Anderson scored what turned out to be the winning goal in the game at the London Stadium, after Palace had taken the lead early on through James McArthur.
It was Anderson’s fifth goal in six games and the summer signing, who arrived for £34million from Lazio, is quickly turning into a key player for Manuel Pellegrini.
Writing in his column for the BBC, Crooks said “Felipe Anderson is playing out of his skin at the moment.
“Apart from his undoubted technical ability, the Brazilian has developed a taste for goals. Five in six games tells its own story, but what West Ham fans will enjoy most is the player’s brand of football. This lad can play.
“Anderson does not possess the volatile explosions of Paolo di Canio or the temperament of Dimitri Payet, but he’s in that class, which rather suggests this could be the beginning of a rather beautiful friendship with the Hammers.”
OPINION
Manuel Pellegrini has still got a lot of work to do at the London Stadium but he’s definitely taking the team in the right direction. They showed against Palace on Saturday that they’ve got character and fight but also a soft underbelly, conceding two goals against a team that’s been struggling this season. After a slow start where he adjusted to life in the Premier League, Anderson has been showing his class for West Ham and is the man in form at the moment. The Hammers have suffered their share of bad luck this season, losing Andriy Yarmolenko for the season and with Marko Arnautovic out until after Christmas. However, in Anderson they’ve unearthed a real gem who can provide the goals West Ham need in Arnautovic’s absence. The three points he helped them win on Saturday moved them up to 11th in the table and only three points off the top seven.