Glenn Hoddle has stated that Mark Noble has been a critical player in West Ham’s progressive season in 2015-16 and will be unlucky not to be given a chance by Roy Hodgson at this summer’s Euro 2016 tournament.
A 2-1 defeat to Stoke on the final day of the campaign has confirmed that Slaven Bilic’s men have finished seventh this season, with the Hammers only a couple of wins away from a top-four spot.
Should Manchester United beat Crystal Palace in the FA Cup final, West Ham will make it into the Europa League in what has been an enterprising season for the club.
Although French star Dimitri Payet has gained much of the plaudits for the Hammers this season, Noble has been a driving voce in the centre of midfield.
Hoddle has stated that the fans favourite has been an under-rated star in West Ham’s rise to prominence and deserves a chance to represent his country as a result.
“Yes, Payet was West Ham’s player of the season — but all the while, quietly pulling the strings in midfield, has been their captain Mark Noble,” he wrote in The Daily Mail.
“He was 29 last week and, as such, we do not expect him to make Roy Hodgson’s England squad for Euro 2016, but he can consider himself unfortunate in that regard.
“He has had a great season. It’s the unerring accuracy of his passing that is his outstanding feature. He sets the tempo of the game.
“It was such an important season for them going into the Olympic Stadium this summer. At the start of it, there were fears they might be doing so in the Championship.
“But amid a great final season at Upton Park, no one can take more credit than Noble.”
