It is a goal West Ham United midfielder Tomas Soucek intends on achieving, but one that could be out of his hands.
The 30-year-old Czech Republic international is settled in London as his sixth season with the club nears its end and wants to retire as a West Ham player. His current deal expires in June 2027, but includes the option of a further year.
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Since joining from Slavia Prague in his homeland on an initial half-season loan in January 2020, Soucek has scored 39 goals across 240 appearances. He has seven so far this season and with seven league matches to go would typically be on track to get into double figures across all competitions for the third time in his five full seasons with West Ham.
But despite Soucek being a fan favourite and a dependable presence with a knack for bailing the team out of tough situations, he faces an uncertain future under new head coach Graham Potter. His sole start in the four league games since the March international break came in the 2-2 draw against Bournemouth on April 5. He played 13 minutes off the bench in the 1-0 loss to Wolves a few days earlier, then was an unused substitute in the 2-1 away defeat by Liverpool and was brought on in the 80th minute of last weekend’s 1-1 draw with Southampton.
It has been a frustrating spell for Soucek, who was previously an ever-present member of the team, making 25 league starts this season.
“We have a squad and sometimes, we’ve gone for a different profile,” Potter, who replaced the sacked Julen Lopetegui in January, said during his pre-match press conference on Thursday when asked why Soucek has been dropped.
“We went for Carlos (Soler) at Anfield and he played well. He was part of a really strong performance and that’s nothing against Tomas at all. We know Tomas’ qualities, his attributes, and he’s competing for a place in the squad. He’ll start games, I’m sure, between now and the end of the season.”
But the reality is Soucek has not been Potter’s initial option from the bench when in a losing position.
Against Wolves, with West Ham already a goal down, Luis Guilherme, Evan Ferguson and Aaron Cresswell were replaced at half-time with Niclas Fullkrug, Soler and Edson Alvarez. Soucek was only introduced in the latter stages of the game. At Liverpool, when again trailing 1-0 at the interval, Potter introduced Vladimir Coufal for Ollie Scarles, who endured a tough afternoon against Mohamed Salah, just before the hour. Fifteen minutes later, Fullkrug replaced Soler and winger Guilherme, who has featured sporadically, came on for defender Jean-Clair Todibo.
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A spell out of the starting XI has seen Soucek linked with a reunion with former West Ham manager David Moyes, now enjoying a second spell as Everton boss.
Moyes had signed Soucek for the club shortly after being reappointed in December 2019 and the pair developed a great bond during his five-and-a-half-year second spell at the London Stadium.
An example is the aftermath of their UEFA Conference League final win over Fiorentina just under two years ago. When Soucek organised a team night out to celebrate, Moyes turned up unannounced to join the fun.
Ahead of Saturday’s Premier League game away to Brighton, it is worth remembering that Soucek rejected a move to the south coast club, then managed by Potter, to join West Ham.
In his final six months at Slavia, the midfielder hired an English tutor so he could communicate without a translator in the event that potential moves to the Premier League materialised. Talks with Brighton went on for several days, but Soucek told his representatives to end them after he was informed of West Ham’s interest.
Brighton were interested in signing Soucek in 2019 when his current West Ham boss Potter was their manager (Dan Istitene/Getty Images)
Across the subsequent five years, there have only been two occasions when Soucek’s future seemed uncertain.
In the 12 months after his arrival, Bayern Munich sent scouts to the London Stadium to monitor his development. Their interest did not lead to a bid and Soucek was humble enough to play down speculation over a move, telling Czech news outlet CT Sport in 2020 that he was “at peace in West Ham”.
There were minor rumblings about a potential departure until the summer of 2022. Gossip became rife that West Ham were willing to entertain offers for Soucek, who had two years remaining on his contract at the time, but this was debunked by West Ham’s hierarchy. In January 2024, they rewarded his service with a contract extension.
Potter often talks about wanting to oversee the club’s transition to a higher ceiling. But in the short term, Soucek could play a key role in this embryonic stage of his vision.
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The Czech’s unselfishness is why his team-mates have always been drawn to him.
After the 1-0 away win against Arsenal in February, Soucek, on his day off, offered his support to runners tackling a half-marathon at the London Marathon Community Track, which is situated next to the London Stadium.
The midfielder has also sacrificed the attacking side of his game to help the team. In the 2022-23 season, he played a deeper role to help Declan Rice’s transition into a box-to-box player. This led to Soucek scoring only three goals across 50 appearances in all competitions, his worst return as a West Ham player.
But Soucek ranks high among Premier League midfielders for his offensive efficiency. Per Opta, since his arrival, he has scored the most headed goals with nine, followed by Brentford’s Yoane Wissa (eight) and Kai Havertz of Chelsea and now Arsenal (six), both of whom would be considered forwards now. As listed below, Soucek is 10th for goals scored in the league among midfielders/attacking midfielders (34), one fewer than free-kick expert team-mate James Ward-Prowse’s tally for Southampton and now West Ham.
Although Soucek is not the most technically gifted of players, he has developed into one of West Ham’s best goal threats. Over the same five-year period, he is 11th among Premier League midfielders for touches in the opposition box (479) and 12th for shots on target (84).
A summer 2025 departure appeared fanciful at the start of this season but could now become a possibility.
It is no secret Potter wants to take West Ham in a new direction but leaving Soucek behind as they set off on that journey could be an ill-advised move.
(Top photo: Dan Istitene/Getty Images)
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