BURKE LIFT FOR MOYES
REECE BURKE and Toni Martinez reckon the future is bright at West Ham after helping to fire them into the FA Cup fourth round.
Local boy Burke, 21, hit the extra-time winner against stubborn League One Shrewsbury with his first goal for his boyhood club on Tuesday night.
Martinez, 20, also impressed on his full debut, playing a part in the goal and vindicating his decision to quit Valencia for the Hammers in the summer of 2016.
Newham-born Burke, who joined the club’s Academy aged nine, said: “I had goosebumps when the ball went in and if you watch my celebration, I didn’t know what to do.
“I was over the moon. I just thought I’d keep my eyes on it and hit it as hard as I can and it went in, so I was really pleased.
Buzzing
“I had 14 of my family here watching, so they’ll be very happy for me.
“I’m sure my dad will be buzzing. It’s unbelievable to score for my club, where I’m from, and it was really needed.
“We would have liked to have won the game in normal time, but it went to extra-time and we didn’t really want penalties.”
Burke made his senior debut for West Ham in the FA Cup four years ago against Nottingham Forest and his goal came in his 14th appearance for the club.
Now, both Burke and Martinez are targeting more first-team opportunities as David Moyes’ side battle for Premier League survival.
Martinez said: “We’re ® into the next round and I’ll keep working in every training session to get more chances.
“It felt great to make my full debut. It was very good for me to get 120 minutes and I’m really happy to get the confidence from the manager to do that.
“I’ve been working for 18 months since I arrived to get this opportunity and I’m very happy to get this chance.”
Reece Oxford also made his first appearance of the season after returning from his loan at Borussia Monchengladbach.
But the 19-year-old struggled and could be set for another loan move abroad.
Borussia and Leipzig want him, but there has been no interest from Premier League clubs.