Soucek's 'respect' for Leicester in goal celebration

West Ham midfielder Tomas Soucek says he did not do his trademark helicopter celebration against Leicester on Thursday out of respect for the opponents.

Former Leicester owner Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha and four others died in a helicopter crash after a match against West Ham at the King Power Stadium in 2018.

Soucek scored the opener on Thursday at the London Stadium as the Hammers went on to record a 2-0 victory.

The Czech usually puts his arms out at his side and spins around - similar to the motion of a helicopter rotor.

But Soucek, who also turned 30 on the day of the game, said: "I didn't think my normal helicopter celebration was the right thing to do, because of what happened to the Leicester owner.

"I wanted to celebrate my goal with my team, but I also wanted to show respect to our opponents."

Srivaddhanaprabha bought Leicester in 2010 for £39m and the club gained promotion to the Premier League four years later.

Under his leadership, the Foxes then defied odds of 5,000-1 to win the top-flight title in 2015-16 for one of the greatest sporting stories.