Mark Noble’s top five moments for West Ham United

Goal against Spurs

The second goal on this list is Noble’s terrific volley against Tottenham Hotspur in a dramatic 4-3 loss, just two months after his first goal against Brighton. The Hammers were winless in their last 11 Premier League games and were in desperate need of a positive result to help them get out of the drop zone.

The then 19-year-old opened the scoring with a first-time volley from the edge of the box which rocketed past Spurs goalkeeper Paul Robinson into the bottom left corner. Funnily enough, it was Tevez who again controlled the ball perfectly for Noble to smash his shot beyond the keeper.

Despite the great start to the game with West Ham carrying a 2-0 lead at one point, Hammers hearts were broken late on when Paul Stalteri tapped in a rebound in the dying seconds of the game to make it 4-3 and to give Tottenham all three points. The result condemned Noble and West Ham to a fifth successive league loss in a row.

This goal has made it onto the list because for one, it was a cracking goal and two despite losing, it was an important game that sparked West Ham’s great escape. The Hammers then went on to win seven of their last nine Premier League games including a great 1-0 away win at Manchester United, to escape what looked like almost certain relegation.

Plus, what sort of West Ham fan doesn’t love a goal against Spurs? I’m sure Noble enjoyed it as much as we did.