Summer signing Gianluca Scamacca got on the scoresheet as West Ham hammered Viborg 6-1 on aggregate to advance to the Europa Conference League group stages.
The Hammers are without a goal or a point in three Premier League games but they had no trouble getting past the Danish side in the play-offs.
Their 3-0 win in the away leg made it 6-1 on aggregate as David Moyes’ side advance to the group stages of a European competition for the second season on the bounce. .
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Scamacca joined West Ham for around £30m from Serie A side Sassuolo earlier this summer and he opened the scoring. This was his second goal in two European outings.
Said Benrahma and Tomas Soucek also found the net after the break to put the seal on an ultimately comfortable evening in front of 1,000 noisy travelling fans in Denmark.
Leading 3-1 from the first leg, last season’s Europa League semi-finalists knew an early goal would settle any nerves and Soucek headed narrowly over from a corner before Scamacca’s low first-time shot was saved.
The opening goal arrived after 22 minutes when full-back Ben Johnson fed Soucek on the right wing and the Czech midfielder’s cross was expertly swept home by Scamacca at the near post.
Viborg almost equalised when former Leeds striker Jay-Roy Grot outstripped Manuel Lanzini and fizzed a shot narrowly wide.
Jakob Bonde, Viborg’s goalscorer in east London, then planted a free header straight at Hammers keeper Alphonse Areola.
And West Ham were living dangerously before half-time when Areola had to make a double save to deny Grot and Justin Lonwijk.
But they doubled their lead six minutes into the second half when Benrahma ran on to Maxwel Cornet’s through ball and slotted home.
It was three just after the hour mark when Soucek bundled home the rebound after Thilo Kehrer’s header was blocked.
Cornet should have opened his West Ham account moments later when he was teed up by Benrahma but the summer signing from Burnley somehow lifted the ball over an open goal.
Nevertheless, it was a satisfying evening’s work for David Moyes’ side and their fans, who will find out where their second straight European adventure will take them when the draw is made on Friday.
The first round of fixtures in the group stages is set to take place on September 8.
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