ENGLAND In yesterday’s win over West Ham in the Premier League, Erling Haaland and Bernardo Silva reenacted the scene where former player Paolo Di Canio pushed referee Paul Alcock in 1998.

After sealing the 3-1 victory in the 86th minute, Haaland impersonated former referee Alcock. He let teammate Bernardo Silva push him in the chest, then staggered and fell to the London field.

The situation took place right in front of Di Canio, who returned to watch his old team West Ham.

In 1998, while playing for Sheffield Wednesday in an Arsenal match, Di Canio got angry and pushed referee Alcock after being given a red card. The incident caused the Italian star to be banned from playing 11 matches and had to end his playing career at Sheffield Wednesday.

After moving to West Ham in January 1999, Di Canio reached a new step in his career. He scored 51 goals in 141 matches for the London team. In 2000, Di Canio performed a double volley against Wimbledon. Later, it was chosen as the most beautiful table in the Premier League of the 2000-2009 decade.

Before Haaland scored and shared a sarcastic joke with Di Canio, West Ham started well. In the 36th minute, James Ward-Prowse headed the opening score for the hosts from Coufal’s cross. However, after the break, Man City restored order. Jeremy Doku curled the ball to equalize 1-1 in the 46th minute, and Silva lifted the ball to increase the score to 2-1 in the 76th minute.

Ten minutes later, Silva assisted Haaland with a cross-angle shot to seal the 3-1 victory. This is the Norwegian striker’s seventh goal after the first five rounds of the 2023-2024 Premier League. He continues to lead the top scorer race, with a three-goal gap compared to the chasing group.

After the win against West Ham, Man City leads the tournament with 15 absolute points. Tottenham and Liverpool are right behind, with the same 13 points. Meanwhile, West Ham fell to sixth with 10 points.