West Ham 5-0 Freiburg [5-1 agg.]: Unstoppable Hammers brush Freiburg aside to reach quarter-finals

West Ham United proved their worth of a place in the Europa League quarter-finals on Thursday evening as they hammered Freiburg 5-0 at the London Stadium. 

In a game that had the makings of another European classic for the Hammers, the players did not disappoint and made up for the first leg defeat a week ago in Germany. 

Lucas Paqueta levelled the aggregate score in the 9th-minute, which was followed by Jarrod Bowen putting them ahead in the tie heading into the break with a brilliant effort. Aaron Cresswell created breathing room seven minutes into the second half before Mohammed Kudus stole the show late on. 

A sensational solo effort in the 77th-minute made it 4-0 before he made it a five-star performance with a fine left-footed strike as David Moyes' side look ahead to Friday's draw. 

Story of the Game 

Moyes made two alterations to the line-up that lost last week's first leg in Freiburg im Breisgau. 

Lukasz Fabianski retained his place in goal with Vladimir Coufal, Konstantinos Mavropanos, Kurt Zouma, and Cresswell, who replaced the injured Emerson, in front of him. 

Tomas Soucek and Edson Alvarez made up the midfield base, supporting an exciting attacking trio of Kudus, Bowen, and Lucas Paqueta, with Michael Antonio leading the line as James Ward-Prowse dropped to the bench. 

The visitors named an unchanged line-up after securing a maiden win over English opposition in European competition. 

Noah Atubolu lined up in goal; Killian Sildillia, Mathias Ginter, Manuel Gulde, and captain Christian Gunter made up the back four; Nicolas Hofler acted as the foundation in midfield alongside Maximilian Eggestien and Lucas Hofler, while Roland Sallai lead the line with Vicenzo Grifo and Ritsu Doan either side. 

There was an atmosphere fitting of such occasion as Freiburg and West Ham fans were in full voice. The hosts fed off it as each defensive action was met with a roar of approval while fans were quick to the feet whenever their side approach the area. 

The Hammers sprung into action straight away and put their opponents under instant pressure. An early chance came Bowen's way as Coufal's throw-in bounced towards the touchline but he couldn't get enough purchase on the ball to beat the Atubolu from a tight angle. 

West Ham were soon awarded for their efforts as they scored the all-important equaliser in the 9th-minute. Cresswell's whipped-in corner was met by a glancing header from Soucek at the near post; as the ball flashed across the six-yard box, Paqueta reacted quickest at the back post to score.  

Freiburg almost produced an immediate response. Eggestien and Doan combined well on the right of the area before slipping Sallai in behind the defence. However, the Hungarian lacked the necessary composure as he dragged his shot wide. 

Moyes' side grew in confidence with every passing minute and had a golden opportunity to take control of the tie in the 18th-minute. Following brilliant centre-forward play by Antonio down the right, in which Gulde proved no match, the Jamaican's pull back found Kudus but the Ghanaian was unable to convert from close range. 

Freiburg attempted to regain their stronghold of the tie but West Ham were set up in a way that absorbed their pressure brilliantly before looking to exploit them in transition, with Antonio's hold-up a key component. 

West Ham made it 2-0 in the 32nd-minute. Again, Soucek and Antonio were involved as the former flicked on Fabianski's goal kick while the latter allowed the ball to run into Bowen's path. The 27-year-old still had a lot to do but overcame pressure before firing in a left-footed strike into the bottom corner. 

The Hammers physically and tactically outclassed their opponents in the first half, limiting them to mere half-chances that were comfortably dealt with. In response, Streich called upon the first leg's match-winner Michael Gregortisch at half-time and his side started the second half positively. 

However, their front-footed approach played to the host's counter-attacking strengths as they placed one foot into the quarter-finals in the 52nd-minute. 

Kudus did well down the left flank before the ball eventually made it to Bowen on the right. The 27-year-old's proceeding cross was tame but deflected fortuitously to Cresswell on the edge of the area. Unopposed, the veteran full-back composed himself before firing a left-footed strike into the bottom corner. 

Freiburg proved as resilient on the pitch as their non-stop chanting supporters were off it, but struggled to provide a true threat in attack as the Hammers defended impeccably as a unit - with Fabianski playing his part as he commanded the area. 

As the visitors pushed on, Kudus and Bowen's pace on the counter provided a huge threat and lead to the former scoring a sensational individual goal in the 75th-minute - the piece de resistance of the night. 

Retrieving a loose pass deep into his own half, Kudus drove forward and kept driving, skipping past anyone that attempted to halt his progression; he then slipped the ball through Gulde's legs before sliding the ball past Atubolu - leaving everyone in disbelief.

The Ghanaian was again on the scoresheet less than ten minutes later. As 'ole' echoed around the stadium on repeat, Soucek drove towards the area then gave the ball to Bowen in a dangrous position. The England international teed up Kudus, who composed himself before firing an unstoppable strike into the net. 

Freiburg's immense support continued until the end, even when a defeat turned into humiliation. Perhaps it was an appreciation and enjoyment of the dying embers of their European adventure.  

Player of the Match: Mohammed Kudus

In the aftermath of his sensational individual goal, Kudus proceeded to grab a steward's seat and take a momentary rest before he was swamped by his team-mate. 

If anyone deserved to take a pause, it was the Ghana international. He provided a relentless energy throughout the game before his substitution in the 86th-minute, moments after his second goal, as he produced a strong defensive contribution while being an unstoppable driving force. 

In hindsight, he'll be disappointed not to have had a hat-trick after missing a glorious chance in the first half, but all will have been forgotten as his first goal will live long in the memories of West Ham supporters and is arguably one of their best-ever European goals.