West Ham United’s Tomas Soucek nearly joined final rivals

But as the Hammers prepare to face Fiorentina in the UEFA Europa Conference League final in his native Prague, it might have been all so different as he could have ended up wearing the purple shirt of the Italians.

“There was interest from Fiorentina about six months before I came to West Ham,” said the 58-times capped Czech Republic international of the sliding doors moment of his footballing career.

“Slavia Prague had only just qualified for the Champions League, though, so in the end I decided to stay with them rather than move to Italy.”

The two-time Czech Footballer of the Year eventually signed for the Hammers in January 2020 in a £20million deal and – having originally joined Slavia as a 10-year-old – it is certainly going to be an emotional return to his old stamping ground in the Czech capital this evening (8pm).

“When I first realised that the final was going to be played here in the Czech Republic I said to everyone: ‘C’mon guys, let’s give this a big go’,” added the 28-year-old.

“It is a great opportunity to connect my two teams and it will be so special to play a European final at home in Prague.

“Our fans have been incredible, too, and so many of them have travelled here without even having any tickets for the game. It’s such an honour to be playing for them.

“Overall, I spent 15 years at Slavia and, after playing in the first team for nearly five seasons, I’ve also been here with West Ham for three-and-a-half years.

“That’s quite a long time now and I will forever remember and appreciate this football club, my team-mates and the fans.

“Tonight is our chance to lift a trophy, collect a medal and, hopefully, then qualify for Europe for a third successive year,” added the midfielder, who has made 154 appearances since joining the Hammers.

“This is the Conference League final and it’s obviously a very big game so we will all need to be ready both as individuals and as a team.

“West Ham United already has a great history and I’m really hoping that we can make even more memories this evening. “