West Ham ace Manuel Lanzini walked away unscathed after he was involved in a significant car crash near the club's training ground.
The Argentine, 29, was being driven by a chauffeur in a £70,000 Mercedes V-Class when it flipped on the A12 on Thursday afternoon and landed on its side. Remarkably, Lanzini was able to walk away from the wreckage before firefighters arrived at the scene.
The attacking midfielder was checked for injuries and passed fit to continue his journey to the Irons' Rush Green base, having returned to the United Kingdom from international duty. A West Ham spokesperson told Mirror Football that Lanzini was met by player care officials upon his arrival at the training ground. It remains to be seen whether he will be available for Sunday's Premier League fixture against Everton.
Meanwhile, a Metropolitan Police spokesperson said: "Police were called at 12:49hrs on Thursday, 31 March to reports of a collision on the A12 in Romford. Officers attended and it was reported that a car had left the westbound carriageway before colliding with a tree. No injuries were reported."
Lanzini was an unused substitute in Argentina's 3-0 victory over Venezuela and 1-1 draw with Ecuador over the international break. The fixtures were World Cup qualifiers but Lionel Messi's side have already booked their spot at the 2022 tournament in Qatar. Lanzini has earned five caps for his country, scoring once. The former River Plate star joined West Ham on an initial loan in 2015 and the transfer was made permanent for £9million the following year.
He has made a total of 193 appearances for the Irons, scoring 28 times, and he has played a major role under David Moyes' high-flying side this season. The East Londoners sit seventh in the table and still harbour hopes of qualifying for the Champions League, while they have been drawn against Lyon in the quarter-finals of the Europa League.
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Moyes heaped praise on Lanzini earlier this year, crediting his player with transforming his position in the wake of numerous serious injuries. "I think he's a changed player because of the injury and he has had to adapt," the West Ham manager said of Lanzini after he grabbed a double in a 3-2 victory over Crystal Palace. "He is closer to a midfield player now than a No. 10, I know we had to play him higher up today but he's had to adapt and change but I am pleased for him."
Lanzini has chipped in with six goals and three assists this season but he was unable to prevent the Irons falling to a 3-1 defeat at Tottenham in their most-recent league outing. The result left West Ham six points behind fourth-placed Arsenal, who have two games in hand ahead of the run-in.
