West Ham United manager Slaven Bilic has likened Dimitri Payet's goal in this afternoon's 1-1 draw with Middlesbrough to one scored by five-time Ballon d'Or winner Lionel Messi.
The Frenchman cancelled out Cristhian Stuani's opener at the London Stadium with a sublime solo effort that saw him beat five Boro defenders before slotting home.
It was enough to see West Ham end a four-match losing streak, but Bilic warned that his side cannot rely on their playmaker to save them all the time.
"It was a great goal, a brilliant individual goal which brought us back into the game. I don't see many players scoring these type of goals. You see free-kicks, you see volleys, scissor kicks, all different types of goals, but this was like Messi's goals," he told reporters.
"It was a brilliant, brilliant moment of magic. But we can't rely on him doing that every week. That gave us a point and gave us half an hour to go on and win the game, but we couldn't win it so it's mixed emotions.
"We got a point after four games that we lost and showed what the team is all about, the quality and spirit. From that perspective I couldn't ask for more. But was it the result we were looking for? No. We wanted to beat them."
The draw leaves West Ham still stuck in the relegation zone, although they are now level on points with 17th-placed Swansea City.
Barney Corkhill
