Cheick Kouyate made history by becoming the first West Ham United player to score at the Olympic Stadium in their 3-0 Europa League third-qualifying round win over NK Domzale.
The Slovenian minnows led 2-1 from last week's first-leg tie, but came undone just eight minutes in when Kouyate made a key breakthrough on the night.
A second arrived before the interval to put the Hammers ahead for the first time, before home debutant Sofiane Feghouli made sure of things with a third in the final 10 minutes.
Relive how the 90 minutes of action unfolded with Sports Mole's live text coverage below.
Hello and welcome to Sports Mole's live text coverage of the Europa League third-round qualifier between West Ham United and NK Domzale. There may be a huge disparity between these two sides - the visitors can't even afford to pay a transfer fee for players, for example - but it remains all to play for heading into this second-leg tie in London.
West Ham were, perhaps understandably, a little sluggish in last week's opening 90-minute tussle in Ljubljana and therefore must now mark their opening match at their new Olympic Stadium home with a victory. It was at this stage last season that the Hammers were sent crashing by another unknown side, so manager Slaven Bilic knows that his men will have to be far closer to their best levels this evening.
TEAM NEWS!
WEST HAM UNITED XI: Randolph, Antonio, Oxford, Reid, Byram, Nordtveit, Kouyate, Feghouli, Noble, Valencia, Carroll
NK DOMZALE XI: Maravel, Brachi, Horic, Balkovec, Dobrovoljc, Horvat, Crnic, Majer, Alvir, Morel, Mance
Let's get straight into things by taking a look at some team news, which from West Ham's perspective shows two changes from last week's first leg. Adrian pulled off a quite incredible double save at the end of that match in the Slovenian capital, keeping his side in the game ahead of tonight's clash, but he drops out this evening to make way for Darren Randolph, who is aiming to become number one at the Olympic Stadium after extending his terms earlier this week.
Michail Antonio retains his place at full-back - a little worrying on the basis of what we witnessed seven days ago when he was repeatedly run ragged by the opposition. That will certainly be an aspect the visitors will look to target this evening, with Bilic still on the lookout for a new man to come in and fill the void created by Aaron Cresswell's untimely injury last month. On the other flank, Sam Byram again steps in.
The other fresh face from last week's match is youngster Reece Oxford; a player who has been heavily linked with a switch to Manchester City in recent weeks but could be used more often in East London this term. Interestingly, he slots into centre-back alongside Winston Reid, while Havard Nordtveit takes up one of the defensive midfield positions. Cheikhou Kouyate will also provide a block in front of the back four, in what is a 4-2-3-1 formation for the hosts.
Sofiane Feghouli and Antonio Valencia will start either side of Mark Noble in the three-man attacking midfield, with record purchase Andy Carroll retaining his place up top. The Hammers need to get the ball into attack far more often this evening if they are to find a route through to goal, having scored their only goal of the tie so far via a Noble penalty. Feghouli in particular will want to impress on his home debut.
The visiting team have named an unchanged starting lineup this evening, incidentally, meaning a place in attack for leading marksman Matic Crnic - the man who scored both goals for Domzale in the first leg. Crnic actually has three in the qualifiers overall, with this the sixth match that the Slovenian outfit have played in the Europa League already this summer.
West Ham United have seemingly been linked with every striker in European football during the off-season, but Slaven Bilic's search continues after being knocked back by a few targets. Andy Carroll is the man tasked with finding the net tonight - certainly not a bad player to have leading your line by any means, though the Hammers need further strengthening if they are to improve on last season's seventh-placed finish.
So West Ham have a job on their hands this evening if they are to keep alive their hopes of competing in the Europa League proper in their first campaign at the Olympic Stadium. It may have been a case of underestimating their opponents last week or, perhaps more so, simply struggling to get out of the blocks in what is still, it must be remembered, their pre-season campaign. The cobwebs have now been blown away, though, and tonight the Hammers know exactly what they have to do.
Crnic was the man who bagged those two Domzale goals, one of which came from the spot in contentious circumstances early on. In between those two goals, Noble also made no mistake from a penalty to ensure that West Ham did get themselves an away goal at the very least. That match actually had to be moved to the Stozice Stadium in the capital of Ljubljana, as the Yellows' home ground is simply too small to accommodate fixtures of this magnitude.
Domzale have had to overcome two opponents already to make it this far, having seen off both Lusitanos and Shakhytar in qualifying rounds one and two. West Ham were thrown straight into this final pre-playoff round, meanwhile - their reward for a very impressive campaign in Bilic's first season in charge last time out. Their highest Prem points tally and highest goal count - now the Croatian boss just needs to go an do it all over again!
Crystal Palace's defeat to Manchester United in May's FA Cup final confirmed West Ham's place in Europe for successive seasons, although it must be remembered that they made it to the qualifiers last year via the backdoor provided by UEFA's Fair Play league. On that occasion Astra Giurgiu proved too strong for the Londoners, earning an aggregate victory to send their opponents crashing in qualifying round three.
West Ham did of course go on to enjoy quite some season, particularly in the opening month when beating Arsenal, Manchester City and Liverpool away from home. European football in this stunning 'new' ground is vital for the club, though, as they look to continue growing to eventually break the mould and become challengers for a top-four spot year-after-year. Should they get through tonight, then just one more two-legged tie awaits before the group stage.
Bilic has gone about strengthening his side during the summer, bringing in seven new faces so far of varying quality. Manuel Lanzini, Toni Martinez, Havard Nordtveit, Sofiane Feghouli, Gokhan Tore, Dominges Quina and Ashley Fletcher have all joined, but only two of those players feature here tonight. Only two of them cost any sort of fee, too, with the others being brought in on a mixture of free contracts and loans.
United are still keen to bring in a few more additions before the window closes, though, particularly up top where a number of well-known names have been linked. Before that, Ayew brothers Jordan and Andre are both said to be close to putting pen to paper, while a new full-back to replace the injured Cresswell is also "close" according to boss Bilic. Excited times for the Hammers, then, but they really do need to keep their European adventure alive to keep all these players happy.
Arguably the best piece of business so far this window, if you can call it that, is keeping Dimitri Payet in place. The France international was linked with the usual suspects - Real Madrid, Barcelona, etc - after scoring a world-class goal in the Euro 2016 opener a couple of months back, but since then things have gone relatively quiet to the relief of the Hammers' supporters. The attacker scored nine goals and provided a further 12 assists in his maiden Prem campaign - quite some going.
DID YOU KNOW? Should West Ham United fail to pick up a victory this evening it will be the first time in their history that they have gone five European games without success, having drawn one and lost three of their last four. The Hammers never actually lost any of their four ties in this competition at the Boleyn Ground, but will that good omen carry on in their new home?
Sticking with the quirky stats, West Ham have conceded exactly two goals in each of their last three qualifiers. That could well spell disaster if it was to happen once again this evening, meaning they would require four goals to overcome their opponents by virtue of the away goals rule. Keeping compact at the back and patiently levelling up the tie will surely be the message from Bilic, who will not underestimate the Slovenians for a second time.
West Ham United, who enjoyed their best-ever campaign in the Premier League last season in terms of points gained, are still without star player Dimitri Payet due to his Euro 2016 exploits. Two players get to make their home debuts tonight - Nordtveit and Feghouli - so it will largely be down to the old guard to get the job done for the hosts.
Domzale may lack the European pedigree of other sides in this competition but they proved last week that, technically speaking, they are a very astute side. West Ham will not have things their own way tonight, although some context is needed. This is a side that cannot afford to pay a transfer fee for players; a side that is forced into selling their top asset each summer; a side that can have its monthly wages paid by just a single weekly wage of, say, Dimitri Payet.
It is also worth pointing out that the Yellows will be in a far better shape than United, having already started their league season. They are three games into the Slovenian PrvaLiga, but things have not gone perfectly thus far - two draws and a win leaving them down in fifth place. Domzale were back in action at the weekend, too, when being held to a draw by the more recognised named of Maribor.
On top of those league games, Domzale have also played five European ties - including the first-leg victory over West Ham - and have suffered just one loss in 15 games stretching back into last season. They are also without loss in six Euro qualifiers, having lost seven in a row between 2008 and 2015 - quite some turnaround! However, just one away win in their last six on the European stage shows that they are still there to be beaten, and West Ham will enter the game as strong favourites to progress.
Crnic is the man who will lead the scoring charge, with Domzale bagging 10 goals in their five qualifiers thus far - a two-a-game ratio. Back to that context thing again, though - the population of Domzale can fit into the 60,000-capacity Olympic Stadium nearly five times over. While respect must be given to the visitors, this really would be a disaster for United if they were to suffer successive setbacks in the competition.
With a little over 10 minutes to go until kickoff in East London, let us check out some of the pre-match views from the West Ham United camp.
Slaven Bilic: "Yes this is an opportunity for West Ham to establish themselves but as well (to think like) this is dangerous. I am an optimistic person but somebody has mentioned it that we experienced some bad examples of stadium moves. Fifty-two thousand season tickets sold are not going to get you a throw-in in the game. They are not going to get you a corner. They are not going to get you a point."
Winston Reid: "It was disappointing last week. We wanted to go there and get a result. Thursday we have an opportunity to put things right, and we need to do it. We want to be in the next round. It's important for the club to be in Europe because we want to grow. As players, we want to experience it and we want to progress."
So Bilic admitting there that West Ham's new home is a step up for the club, but it guarantees nothing. Reid was asked more specifically about last week's first leg, confessing in his pre-match press conference that United quite simply have to turn things around tonight if they are to continue their upwards trajectory. Defeat does not bare thinking about, with numerous players said to be on the brink of joining.
BENCH WATCH!
WEST HAM UNITED SUBS: Adrian, Page, Burke, Obiang, Cullen, Quina, Fletcher
NK DOMZALE SUBS: Mimic, Vetrih, Juninho, Repas, Blazic, Husmani, Bratanovic
A quick look at the benches of both sides, then, which is not all that strong from a West Ham perspective. Adrian drops down to the bench following his heroic save at the end of last week's opener, while Quina and Fletcher are among those hoping to make their home debuts at some stage. Pedro Obiang and Reece Burke provide midfield and defensive cover respectively, meanwhile.
Exciting times for West Ham supporters, this - their first-ever viewing of their side at this impressive venue in a competitive fixture. Not that they would agree, but last week's defeat could well be a blessing in disguise with this match now having plenty riding on it. Expect a strong atmosphere over the next 90 minutes or so, as the two sides line up by the tunnel area ready for the pre-match anthem.
The players are now out on the pitch and the West Ham supporters are certainly up for this one. Will the Hammers kick off life at the Olympic Stadium with a win? We are about to find out...
KICKOFF! West Ham, fittingly, get us up and running at the Olympic Stadium in this Europa League qualifying third-round tie. Antonio bursts down the flank early on, but is halted in his tracks by a couple of NK Domzale players.
Nothing really in this match at the moment - West Ham getting forward early on through Antonio but Domzale winning themselves a free kick which allowed them to punt the ball into the area. Patience will be key for the Hammers.
Plenty of probing being done by West Ham at the moment, but their opponents standing strong and not really letting any shots come in. Home supporters now urging their side on as they look to knock the ball from back to front.
WEST HAM UNITED 1-0 NK DOMZALE (CHEIKHOU KOUYATE)
Well there's your answer for the pub quiz 30 years from now - Kouyate is the first player to score at the Olympic Stadium (as a 'proper' football stadium, anyway) as he tucks home from a Sam Byram cross. Valencia did well down the left to create the opening, picking out Byram who rather scuffed the ball across goal for his teammate to coolly flick home.
SHOT! Valencia has been very lively so far, but his latest shot is simple enough for Maravel to deal with. Just the performance Bilic was hoping for, with the Hammers well on top and now looking even stronger favourites to progress through.
As things stand West Ham will progress through thanks to their away goal, via Noble's penalty last week, meaning the pressure is on Domzale to get forward and find a way through. Marko Alvir had the visitors' first shot of the match, but Antonio was there to block away.
A bright moment for Feghouli, who picks out Carroll at the end of his run for the Englishman to attempt one of his overhead kicks. A decent enough connection on the ball but it was blocked away before it could reach the opposition target.
Worth mentioning that this is not the 'official' opening of the Olympic Stadium under West Ham's ownership. That comes on Sunday when Juventus visit, with Bilic simply wanting his players to focus on the task at hand this evening and not have to worry about any pre-match pleasantries.
A very good move from the visiting side culminates in the ball being slipped through for Mance. Last season's top scorer saw his attempt kept out by Randolph, looking to impress in place of Adrian tonight, but the offside flag was up anyway.
A decent enough response from Domzale, who know that they cannot afford to sit back if they are to progress. West Ham will be happy enough at this stage, too, having made the breakthrough they so much craved early on.
A weak Valencia pass is pounced on, allowing the visitors to break. Mance almost through and causing problems, though West Ham dealt with things on this occasion. The atmosphere has petered out somewhat over the past five minutes as the excitement levels just drop a tad.
WEST HAM UNITED 2-0 NK DOMZALE (CHEIKHOU KOUYATE)
West Ham move ahead in the tie for the first time! Kouyate is not known for his goals, but he has doubled his personal tally for the night with another neat finish. Antonio's cross from the right was headed down well by Carroll, who opted against going for goal himself which proved the right choice. Kouyate still had a bit to do when tucking past Maraval.
Domzale were a little unhappy with that goal as they had a player down injured. Manager Luka Elsner will surely be more concerned with the lopsided nature of his backline, though, which has helped play Kouyate onside for both of his strikes.
Some nice combination play down the left from the visitors, with the ball being cut back into a decent area for Mance. He could not quite get his boot on the end of the ball, however, and West Ham could clear the danger. Another half-decent chance for the Yellows.
Horvat, the visitors' defensive midfielder, wins the ball and bursts forward into the Hammers' attacking third. He gets a left-footed shot away at the end of it, too, but it sailed well over Randolph's crossbar.
SHOT! A looping header from Mance outside the box has Randolph back-peddling. It would have been the strangest of goals had it gone in, but the Hammers keeper did well to collect with relative ease in the end. Two attempts in three minutes for the visitors.
Crnic was the star player in last week's first leg, but he has been incredibly quiet since picking up that early yellow card. Valencia far more involved on the other side, getting in another cross which is blocked aside for a United corner.
CHANCE! So, so close to a hat-trick for Kouyate. West Ham break after clearing a Domzale free kick, with Feghouli leading the counter and slipping in Antonio on the right. The ball is played across towards Kouyate, but it is just about cleared away for a corner by an opposition player.
Kouyate, Valencia and Carroll each have an opportunity to squeeze the ball home form an uncleared corner, but somehow fail to do so. West Ham knocking on the door for a third goal, which will surely be enough to make sure of a place in the playoffs.
YELLOW CARDS! Two bookings in quick succession at the Olympic Stadium; Jure Balkovec entering the book for what appeared to be dissent and Antonio for bringing down Crnic.
CLOSE! A cross comes in from the left via Kouyate, which Antonio meets near-perfectly with a side-footed volley. The ball ended just inches wide of the target, with a deflection off an opposition player enough to prevent the Hammers bagging a third of the night.
HALF TIME: WEST HAM UNITED 2-0 NK DOMZALE
The half-time whistle sounds at the Olympic Stadium, with West Ham sitting a little more comfortably at this stage compared to seven days ago. The Hammers scored twice in the first half of this second leg through an unlikely source, meaning that Domzale need a goal if they are to salvage extra time.
The opening goal, not just of the night but also at this impressive venue, arrived eight minutes in when Byram's cross was met seven yards from goal by Kouyate, who deftly flicked the ball past Maraval. Valencia was involved heavily in that goal, and he came close to adding a second when blasting a shot on target from the edge of the box soon after.
Domzale were certainly not willing to sit back, knowing that they required a goal if they were to progress through, but the Hammers found a second of the match when Carroll chested the ball down for Kouyate to double his tally. The midfielder had never previously scored a brace before in 321 games as a professional footballer.
The closest the visitors came to scoring arrived 33 minutes in when Mance saw his looping header dealt with by Randolph. The Hammers probably should have put the tie beyond doubt before the interval when hitting their opponents on the break, only for Antonio's final ball to lack the pace needed for Kouyate to tap home, while former Forest man also side footed a volley narrowly wide.
Will wee see any changes from either side at the interval? Bilic will certainly hope to rotate things in the second half, but this tie is still in the balance at this stage with the visitors requiring just one goal to force extra time - two will see them win it.
WEST HAM UNITED SUBS: Adrian, Page, Burke, Obiang, Cullen, Quina, Fletcher
NK DOMZALE SUBS: Mimic, Vetrih, Juninho, Repas, Blazic, Husmani, Bratanovic
RESTART! We are back underway at the Olympic Stadium! No changes made by either side at the break, meaning it is as you were. West Ham just need to see the job through know after doing the hard work in the first half.
YELLOW CARD! Kenan Horic completed wipes out Kouyate to earn a deserved yellow card. The caution count starting to build up now, with four dished out already just three minutes into the second half. Domzale not the most disciplined of sides.
Feghouli has had a decent enough home debut so far, but he was just a tad slow releasing Carroll a few moments ago which allowed an opposition player to get across and cut out the ball.
Domzale are looking dangerous when they get forward and are certainly not giving the Hammers' backline an evening off. That said, there has not been enough end product with Randolph yet to make any real save of note across the 52 minutes of this match.
Well we have one of those bizarre scenarios here; the referee being replaced by the fourth official after tweaking his hamstring early into this second half. We have around 35 minutes left to play at the Olympic Stadium and West Ham are looking good value to progress through.
Superb play from Valencia - the best of the match so far by some distance! He takes the ball past one man, then a second, then flicks the ball through another to charge into the box. Before he can bring the ball under control his legs are taken, but the replacement referee says the contact was just outside the area.
Winston Reid has been down for the past couple of minutes receiving some treatment which is not ideal for Bilic. Not sure if he will want to risk the centre-back if there's any risk of injury, but he seems OK to continue for the time being.
West Ham just happy to knock the ball around a bit more now, knowing that they are through as things stand. Crnic looks to counter for the first time tonight, but he is swarmed by three United players and inevitably loses possession before breaking into the box.
Reid is still not moving all that comfortably, meaning we could be seeing Obiang in the next few minutes. Bilic yet to make any changes, with this tie still in the balance with 30 minutes left to play. Extra time still on the cards unless the Hammers score a third.
NK DOMZALE SUB! Horvat is replaced by Husmanu for Domzale. The visitors looking to push more bodies forward now, which inevitably opens up gaps at the back but could also ask some real question of the Hammers' defence; a defence that includes Reece Oxford and a groggy Winston Reid.
A West Ham free kick is not cleared by the visitors, with the ball falling to Reid around nine yards out. The centre-back, clearly fit enough to stay on, blasts high over the bar from a central position.
CLOSE! The first chance of the half so far falls the way of Feghouli, who cannot quite direct his header on target when left unmarked just six yards out. Domzale have made their second change of the evening, but West Ham still unchanged.
SAVE! Crnic with a decent, curled effort on target which forces Randolph into his first real save of the match. The offside was quickly latched on to by a Domzale player, who was flagged for offside when firing goalwards.
CHANCES! This game has certainly come to life over the past five minutes or so; Feghouli the man with the latest chance as he blasts a yard wide of goal. Valencia is then played through, although his attempt was comically bad as he got his shot all wrong.
So still West Ham's European hopes remain in the balance. They are heading through as things stand, but Domzale are giving a great account of themselves and do look as though they have a goal in them through star player Crnic. A little over 15 minutes to play here.
Oxford with a stunning challenge on Majer just as he was readying himself to shoot. A corner for Domzale provides a chance to get the ball into the box, but it is easily dealt with by West Ham who are doing enough to remain ahead in this tie.
NK DOMZALE SUB: A last roll of the dice for Elsner, as he brings on Juninho for Majer 12 minutes from time - or 42 minutes from time if they can find a late leveller in the tie. Husmani's shot from 30 yards out is easily dealt with by Randolph.
WEST HAM UNITED SUB! Two-goal hero Kouyate is replaced by Obiang for the remainder. Bilic just looking to go more defensive, then, perhaps predicting an onslaught from the visitors as they go all out for a breakthrough on the night.
GOAL! WEST HAM UNITED 3-0 NK DOMZALE (SOFIANE FEGHOULI)
That should do it! West Ham through to the playoff stage of the Europa League for the first time, as a Mark Noble long ball is plucked out the air brilliantly by Feghouli who calmly picks his spot to bag a debut goal.
Feghouli booked for his celebration, incidentally, even though he didn't actually take off his shirt - merely flashing his abs for spectators. A few fans just starting to make their way out, perhaps wary of the congestion around the ground. Bilic maybe thinking about a raft of changes now.
WEST HAM UNITED SUB! Feghouli has made way for Quina late on, with Bilic finally able to bring on some fresh legs thanks to that third goal of the night. Further changes to be made in the next few moments, too.
WEST HAM UNITED SUB! A special moment for Ashley Fletcher on what is a special night for his new club West Ham. He is on in place of Andy Carroll, who put in a good shift tonight and bagged a vital assist for the key second goal.
FULL TIME: WEST HAM UNITED 3-0 NK DOMZALE
WEST HAM UNITED PROGRESS THROUGH 4-2 ON AGGREGATE!
West Ham United are into the playoff round of the Europa League for the first time, thanks to a solid 3-0 victory on the night over NK Domzale. The Hammers may have been stunned 2-1 in the first leg, but they made no mistake this evening and were well on top right from their eighth-minute goal,
Well that concludes Sports Mole's live text coverage of events at the Olympic Stadium. An on-the-whistle report can be found by clicking here, while reaction from East London will follow in due course on what was an historic night for West Ham.
