West Ham United’s manager David Moyes spoke at length following his side’s 1-1 draw with Chelsea on Saturday afternoon.
In a game with plenty of VAR controversy, three goals were disallowed and Chelsea were denied a late penalty, with Emerson’s goal against his former side in the first half earning a point, cancelling out Joao Felix’s opener.
Here is every word Hammers boss Moyes said on VAR, the draw, Declan Rice, Tomas Soucek, Graeme Souness’ recent column, injuries, comparison with VAR drama involving Maxwel Cornet in September and more.
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What did you make of Tomas Soucek’s handball that was not given late on?
Not seen it.
What did you make of the decision to rule out Tomas Soucek’s goal minutes earlier?
I’ve not seen that either.
Overall, are you pleased with a point?
Chelsea were much better in the first half and we struggled too, the big thing was we didn’t go further behind because Chelsea threatened us. They had a couple of decisions that went for us, the offsides might have been tight or they might have been clear, I’ve not seen them either, but I was pleased. I thought we improved, for 20 minutes of that we found it very difficult against Chelsea. They were good and we weren’t as good, we didn’t defend well in the opening 20/30 minutes, but we grew into the game a little bit, got ourselves back into it, stayed in it and earned probably a good point from it in the end.
With another good point, do you feel like you are turning a corner?
Well, I want more than a point but after 20 minutes, I would’ve taken a point, that’s for sure.
Do you feel this makes up for Maxwel Cornet’s harshly ruled out goal back in September?
Was it a handball from Tomas they are saying? No, it can never be in comparison, never put that in comparison of what happened to us at Chelsea. Not even close.
Why?
Because the other one was game-changing for us and at different times. I don’t think that. I’ve not seen it so I can’t comment on the handball that they are talking about today. I actually didn’t know about it until I came into the press office and hear what the television thought about it.
How is Lucas Paqueta and how did his injury impact you?
Losing Paqueta was a blow but we don’t know the answer yet. I don’t know, I haven’t asked the medical team but obviously, it’s a shoulder injury. I don’t know if he’s popped his shoulder or if it’s just the way he feels, I’ve not got the answer to that yet. (Nayef) Aguerd had a bit of groin (issue). The big thing for us is that Declan Rice played with a virus today and you can probably see that he was the way he was because of a virus and it had a big effect on us.
Graeme Souness wrote a column saying that Declan Rice is a centre-back. Did he prove today that is not the case?
Graeme Souness is a good judge and if you are talking about central midfield players, Graeme Souness is as good a judge as anybody. Certainly from me watching, I think Declan Rice is a top midfield player and has shown it week in, week out. Today, he did a great job for us because he wasn’t well.
Is there any concern with Lucas Paqueta because it’s a similar spot to his shoulder injury in October?
That’s exactly right, that’s what we’re worried about. I’ve not had a chance to talk to the medical team to see what they are saying about it.
Where was Aaron Cresswell today?
Aaron Cresswell had a virus as well, he’s been probably ill for three or four days.
What did you make of Emerson’s performance and his recent form?
Emerson has greatly improved. I think we’ve been beginning to see a bit more like him. Taken him a bit of time to settle in, a bit like a lot of the players. I think the system we’re playing suits him better as well, but I thought he played better today. The goal, for him to score against his old club is always good for him. I was pleased for him because he’s been steady Eddie, he’s been keeping at it and he’s been getting a chance in recent weeks.
How pleased were you with Tomas Soucek’s contribution in the game?
Tomas is someone who has always had a big impact for us because he can help in both boxes and we need it. Today, I’ve got to say Chelsea were a really big side, or they felt that way. We needed it at set-pieces, the corner kicks. We hadn’t started with Tomas, but you have to say when he came in, he was involved with a lot of good parts of the game. We obviously know that we need him to help us to keep the ball better as well but over the piece, Tomas has done a really good job for us.
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