Accrington Stanley defender Matthew Pearson could only applaud Dimitri Payet's free-kick winner on Wednesday night.
Stanley almost produced a big result in the EFL Cup tie at the London Stadium as they went into injury time drawing 0-0 with their English Premier League opponents. They'd put in a brilliant defensive performance and were just seconds away from getting the draw to take the game into extra time.
Then Payet struck.
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West Ham earned a free-kick in the 96th minute of the game in Payet territory - and the Frenchman didn't disappoint as he curled a beautiful strike into the top corner to win the match for Slaven Bilic's men. The free-kick was outstanding, but what about Pearson's immediate reaction to the goal? While everyone else looks devastated to lose a goal so late in the game, he can only applaud the quality of the attacking midfielder (skip to around the 0.54 mark):
Fair play to Pearson - you can't deny Payet's quality, even if it is coming in the most excruciating circumstances.
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Topics: Football, EFL Cup, West Ham United, Dimitri Payet