Manuel Pellegrini enjoyed another memorable night in the Carabao Cup as West Ham thumped Macclesfield 8-0.
Pellegrini, who twice won the trophy with Manchester City, named a strong side against the Football League’s bottom club and was rewarded with West Ham’s biggest win in 35 years.
Robert Snodgrass, Lucas Perez, Ryan Fredericks and debutant Grady Diangana all scored their first goals for the club while Michail Antonio and Angelo Ogbonna were also on target.
“It’s never easy to find space when you have eight or nine players in front of you but we were patient,” said Pellegrini.
“It was a good win because we must show the difference between a team in the Premier League and a team in League Two – but you don’t always do it. That’s why I’m happy for the players.”
Goalkeeper Adrian had to make an early save to deny Macclesfield’s Harry Smith, but that was the only moment of mild discomfort the hosts suffered all night as they threatened to beat their record win, 10-0 against Bury in the same competition in 1983.
Three goals in 10 minutes from Antonio, Snodgrass – his first since joining West Ham in January 2017 – and Perez virtually booked their place in round four before half-time.
Fredericks grabbed the goal of the night with a spectacular run and shot, Ogbonna headed the fifth and Snodgrass slid in number six.
Then 20-year-old academy graduate Diangana capped an impressive debut with a couple of composed finishes to wrap up the scoring.
“I’m pleased for him because the only thing I demand from young players is when they get the opportunity to take the opportunity. He did really well,” added Pellegrini.
“One of the things I asked the club is to bring the under-23s to the same training ground we use. Last month we started to do that so it’s easy for me to see their performance.
“He’s a young player and he must improve on a lot of things to be a top player, but he’s working hard and doing well and if he continues with the personality he showed today I think he will improve a lot.”