Declan Rice was already well aware of who 'Knollsy' was after the West Ham fan made himself a hero at their Europa Conference League semi-final second leg against AZ Alkmaar.
Chris Knoll was filmed fighting off a mob of ultras who made their way towards a section of the stadium that contained the families of West Ham players and staff. The 58-year-old sustained injuries to his face as he appeared to almost single-handily keep the baying mob at bay despite being hugely outnumbered.
England international Rice was already aware of 'Knollsy' after sending him a video message in 2021 when he was in ill, and it was perhaps remembered by the man who has made himself an overnight football celebrity. The captain at the Premier League club said at the time: "I just want to send you the best of wishes from me and everyone at West Ham and we're all fighting for you mate."
The fan of David Moyes' team said of the incident: “I don’t like bullies. You could see they were intent on causing trouble and I did not want them to get to those behind us."
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