We’re down to No22 in our #50GreatestHammers countdown, in association with our Official Investments Partner, Basset & Gold…
Ludek Mikolsko
Years at West Ham: 1990-98
Appearances: 373
Goals: 0
His name is Ludo Miklosko, he comes from near Moscow…
How many West Ham players can say they have their song chanted regularly by the Claret & Blue Army, 20 years after their last appearance in the Club’s shirt?
Ludek ‘Ludo’ Miklosko is one member of that select band, and the supporters’ affection for the Czech stopper is a clear sign of just how much he stood out in goal at the Boleyn Ground throughout the 1990s.
His tally of 99 clean sheets has only been beaten by two goalkeepers in the Club’s history – Phil Parkes and Ted Hufton – and only two others are within ten of his Premier League total of 47.
Mikolosko was born in Prostejov, Czechoslovakia in 1961 and started his career in his home country with RH Cheb and Banik Ostrava.
He was 28 by the time he caught the attention of Hammers boss Lou Macari, who signed him in February 1990, just before he resigned from his role and was replaced by Club legend Billy Bonds.
Miklosko took over from another legendary figure, Parkes, between the sticks and would not relinquish the position of first choice stopper until the 1997/98 season.
He was Hammer of the Year in 1991, the same season the team reached the semi-finals of the FA Cup and won promotion back to the top flight, and he was involved in another promotion-winning campaign two years later.
Perhaps his most famous day in Claret & Blue came on the final day of the 1994/95 season, when he gave a Man of the Match performance in a 1-1 draw with Manchester United, preventing the Red Devils from winning the Premier League title.
His last game for the Hammers came in December 1997 at Derby County and he ended his playing career with a three-year spell at Queens Park Rangers.
Ludo later returned to the Boleyn Ground as a goalkeeper coach and now works as a player representative in the Czech Republic