Accrington Stanley manager John Coleman has lauded the quality of Dimitri Payet after the French playmaker scored a last gasp free-kick to give West Ham a 1-0 win over his side on Wednesday night.
The Hammers have been on a losing streak in the Premier League and as such the game against the Football League outfit was supposed to be morale-boosting big win.
However, Slaven Bilic’s men made it hard for themselves in an underwhelming performance collectively, with it taking a moment of magic from Payet to send the hosts through.
The latest effort will be added to the former Marseille star’s showreel of amazing free-kicks and was enough to break Accrington hearts.
The League Two side’s manager Coleman has stated that Payet’s free-kicks are almost like penalties and that the quality of the France international was the difference between the teams.
“People will throw bouquets at us for our spirit today but we don’t want to be seen as plucky,” Coleman is quoted as saying by The London Evening Standard.
“We came here to win and we matched them for most of the game. Unfortunately we’ve gone to sleep in the 96th minute and you give a player of Payet’s quality a free-kick on the edge of the box it’s tantamount to a penalty.
“We talked about putting a man on the line but that makes it difficult for the goalkeeper. You’ve got to applaud the quality.
“But he earns more in a month than our whole squad earns in a season. Because he can do that. And we can’t.”
