David Moyes is refusing to set West Ham a points target for the remainder of the season but insists his side are not yet safe, despite their recent resurgence.
The Hammers’ 4-0 thrashing of Bournemouth on Sunday means they have taken ten points from their last five Premier League games to climb to 13th, six points clear of the bottom three, with a game in hand.
The sheer volume of teams still in the relegation mix means it is likely the bar for survival will be considerably lower than the fabled 40-point mark often targeted by managers.
The Irons are currently on 34 points but, ahead of tomorrow night’s meeting with Liverpool, Moyes pushed back on the idea that his team may be just one win from safety.
“I don’t think it would be fair to say what we think [we need] to stay up, but we do feel that we’ve got to get more points than we’ve got at the moment, that is for sure,” he said. “[But if] we have to get more, then it means the teams below us have to get more as well. I think they are all aware of that.
“I think other results do matter at this time of the season, it doesn’t matter what anybody says. More importantly, you have to look after your own and if you win your own, you take care of your own business. [But] yes, we’ll be looking at all the other games like so many other teams will be as well.”
Moyes celebrated his 60th birthday on Tuesday and joked that he was “thrilled” by 75-year-old Roy Hodgson’s return to Crystal Palace, which robbed him of the dubious honour of being the division’s oldest manager.
“It didn’t seem right being the oldest manager in the Premier League,” the Scot said. “But that’s what longevity does to you and sometimes, if you can stay the course then you do become the oldest one. Roy has shown that hopefully, there’s plenty more years to come as well.”
