In an interview with talkSPORT, former West Ham right-back Carl Jenkinson revealed Dimitri Payet was the second-best free-kick taker he played with at West Ham, and that forgotten Brazilian forward Nenê was the best he had ever seen. 

Anderson Luiz de Carvalho or ‘Nenê‘ signed for Wes Ham in 2015. However, it was his period in Europe before that made West Ham take a risk on the then 34-year-old. He had performed well in La Liga with Mallorca, Alavez, and Celta Vigo before making the switch to France with Monaco.

His brilliant performances in the South of France earned him a move to PSG in 2010, a year before the Qatari’s took over the club It was in Paris he became more well-known by fans of the top five leagues. In fact, Nenê played with a young Alphonse Areola at PSG before leaving for Qatari side Al-Gharafa in 2013.

The forward signed for Brazilian Serie A side Vasco De Gama where he spent the first half of the season before joining West Ham in January. His return to Europe was far from a success, he made just eight appearances in the Premier League, totaling 135 minutes. However, despite his lack of impact off the pitch. According to Carl Jenkinson, he clearly had a lot of talent which he showed at the Chadwell Heath training ground.

Jenkinson said: “Funnily enough there was another player at West Ham called Nenê, signed on loan, and he was the best free-kick taker I’ve ever seen. He played a few games, not a lot, but he’s had a great career playing for PSG, but I remember sitting there in training watching him take about 20 free-kicks and every single one over the wall and in the top corner, I’ve never seen anything like it. He was scary in terms of free-kick taking, I’ve never seen anything like it.”

After leaving West Ham, Nenê returned to his homeland of Brazil. He played 182 matches for Vasco de Gama where he contributed to 83 goals in 182 matches. He also played for Sao Paulo and Fluminese before returning to Vasco. At 43-years-old Nene is still playing in the Brazilian Serie A with Juventude.

Fellow former West Ham free-kick expert Dimitri Payet, who a lot more West Ham fans will remember currently plays for Vasco De Gama. Jenkinson was also asked about the Frenchman’s unbelievable quality from a dead ball.

“He (Payet) was very, very good, technically really good, his delivery from free-kicks and set pieces made him one of the best I’ve ever seen,” Jenkinson told talkSPORT.

However, the Harlow-born defender was keen to point out one player he rated above both Dimitri Payet and Nenê, that is Santi Cazorla, who he played with at Arsenal.

“Santi Cazorla, he was just mustard,” the full-back said when asked about the best midfielder he played alongside. With both feet the ball would stick to his feet, he would take corners with his left and right. He was quite a diminutive guy, he was tiny, he wasn’t quick, but you just couldn’t get the ball off of him, he was so good.”

West Ham fans will hope to have their own Santi Cazorla in Carlos Soler. He was able to show his abilities from set-pieces in a Valencia shirt, however, in a team with Messi, Neymar, and Mbappe in Paris, he was unable to get a chance at PSG. It will be exciting what he can offer Julen Lopetegui’s team from set pieces this season.