Is Noble an all time great?
An interesting pair of milestones were achieved during the away game at Bournemouth earlier this month.
First, club stalwart Mark Noble made his 300th league appearance for West Ham, putting him just a handful of games away from the club’s all-time top 20.
Second, Dimitri Payet cemented his place in the hearts and minds of the Hammers’ faithful with an inspiring match winning performance.
But while club captain Noble continues to divide opinion, despite his longevity and commitment on and off the pitch, the French summer signing has seemingly ensured lifelong legendary status after just 14 games.
For all the attributes Noble may lack (creativity and goalscoring prowess spring to mind), Payet makes up for in abundance, and the fans have taken him as one of their own immediately.
And he’s not the first player to make an instant impact on the team and fans. Here’s a list of five players who combined have made almost 50 fewer league appearances than Noble, but are still considered all time-greats.
