ERLING HAALAND MAY have stolen the headlines as he made his Premier League debut for Manchester City yesterday, but Conor Coventry hit the same landmark at London Stadium for West Ham.
“Dream come true,” the Republic of Ireland U21 captain wrote on social media this morning, having come on as a late substitute to make his top-flight debut in the Hammers’ 2-0 defeat.
David Moyes called on Coventry in the 90th minute, and the London-born midfielder replaced Pablo Fornals for the closing minutes.
It was a memorable day for the 22-year-old, who has had to bide his time for a Premier League bow despite making his first-team debut for the side in September 2018.
Dream come true ⚒ https://t.co/kNTU1kuSAE
— Conor Coventry (@conorcoventry) August 8, 2022
Coventry joined at the age of 10, so it’s been a lifelong ambition to represent his boyhood club on the biggest stage. It’s something he spoke about in recent days in an interview with West Ham’s in-house media team.
“I feel like I’m ready,” Coventry replied when asked about potentially playing in the Premier League this season “I’ve spent some time away from the club [on loan] and it’s made me miss the club even more and want to be here even more.
“I feel like I’m ready and I’ve been here so long and all I want to do is play here. Whenever the gaffer needs me I’m ready and hopefully I can get a chance.”
“I’m 10 minutes from the stadium,” he later added, “my Mum and Dad worked in East Ham and it’s massive for me. I’ve been here since I was 10, so I know what it means. It’s hard to say without sounding too cringy, but of course I’d love to play here.”
On international ambitions, he noted: “Whenever I’m with the 21s, it’s to qualify for the Euros, and if not, obviously it’s every boys’ dream to get a senior cap and it’s something I’d love to do, hopefully I can push on and get some.”
Coventry’s Ireland U21 team-mate Armstrong Okoflex and goalkeeper Darren Randolph were also on the bench yesterday.
