Thomas picked up Marc-Antoine Fortune's pass on the left wing, before bending the ball brilliantly inside the far post, taking full advantage of some woeful West Ham defending.

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In the same way that there's pleasure in making contact with a tennis ball, in bending the laws of physics to your will, there's something about throwing and catching the small, rubber lacrosse ball.

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The ball soared down the right-field line, bending toward foul territory as it flew.

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He won titles aplenty at Manchester United and one at Real Madrid, and the Galaxy will be looking for him and his famous ball-bending right foot to lead them to a trophy cabinet full of silverware in those five years.

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