West Ham United manager David Moyes spoke to the media at length on Wednesday afternoon ahead of facing Cypriot side AEK Larnaca in the Europa Conference League on Thursday night.
The Hammers head to the AEK Arena for the first of their two-legged round of 16 clash against a Larnaca side who currently sit second in the Cypriot First Division, two points shy of leaders APOEL Nicosia.
Ahead of the game in Cyprus, here is every word Moyes said on facing Larnaca, team news, his side’s current form, pressure on him and the players, their ambitions in the Europa Conference League and more.
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How much are you looking forward to facing AEK Larnaca in the Europa Conference League?
We're looking forward to it. It's a big opportunity and great that we're at this stage of the competition. We know that to get through would be another big achievement. To have European football at quarter-final level for the last two years would be huge for us. We're looking forward to the game. We're not going to underestimate it or take any of it for granted. We've got a tough game on our hands and we'll be relaying that to the players.
The Europa Conference League is a new competition but you're the only team to ever have a 100% record in the group stages - can you realistically win the whole competition?
I'd love to win the competition. I'd love to get to the final. I'd love to keep progressing with West Ham in Europe. We had a pretty good go at it last year (in the Europa League). We're trying to have a go in a different competition this year. We do think we've got every chance. On our day, we're a match for any side. Also on their day, any team could get through because it's the way European football is.
Jose Mourinho was in tears after winning this competition with Roma last season. Does it show its importance?
I totally agree. To try to win any trophy as a football manager, or a player, very few get that big opportunity to do so. Jose Mourinho showed you how much it mattered to him and he is a serial winner. It was really important to us last year – we wanted desperately to win the Europa League but we couldn't quite get past the semi finals. We've got a job to do to try to reach the quarter finals at the moment. It would be a great achievement if West Ham could talk about being in the quarter finals of two European competitions back to back. That would be seen as a hell of an achievement.
Is this a good opportunity to lift the mood?
We've had a lot of mood lifting. We beat Notts Forest. We put in a good performance at Old Trafford. We didn't get through. We're seeing this as a good start to a new week. We look to get off to a good start.
Are the squad in a fragile state after the Brighton loss?
Defeats are never a good thing but overall, our results in the main since we have come back from the WC have been going steadily up rather than down. I think the game at Old Trafford took an awful lot out of us and it really went to the wire. It was always going to be a tough game at Brighton no matter what happened. It proved to be the case. But you have got to move on and that’s what football does. You always get another opportunity and they are coming very quickly. We have a great opportunity to try and go a long way here and we have got two legs to try and get to a quarter final of a European competition. That’s the motivation, that’s the drive. Whatever has just happened has gone and we are certainly focusing on the next job which is Larnaca.
Old Trafford took a lot out of you – is that a slight worry that these European games will as well?
The difference is this is something we have been doing, did it for most of last season. We know Thursday/Sunday football is never a brilliant situation but I tell you what, all the clubs in that top half of the Premier League are all desperate to get into these competitions. We want to stay in it. I want to go as far as I can and win it if possible. This competition we have started really well and we want to try keep it going.
You’ve used the last few weeks to remind the fans just how good they have had it in recent seasons and to stick with the team – can you understand the frustration the fans get from that, because as much as they loved the past, they’re wanting to see improvement in the present, because it is a worrying time.
Totally, I totally see that. The team didn’t perform well in the last game, we know that, and haven’t performed at the levels they have done for most of last season. I totally get it.
You have used this competition to blood young players and give other players minutes, but with the form the team is currently in – two wins in your last 13 league games – can you afford to not put out your best team? Right now, you need momentum and that winning feeling.
If you look at the history, we have blooded a lot of young players, like in Bucharest and they did really well, boys against Dinamo Zagreb last year as well. we have tried to give the young boys opportunities in the earlier games. When you get to the knock-out stages you don’t have so many opportunities to recover if the result doesn’t go so well. we have a first team squad of players which we put together knowing we had Europe in mind. Last year we were just a bit short of the level. We now have a squad of players who can compete at this level and hopefully be ready for the Premier League too.
What is the latest team news?
Micky is travelling with us, he had a bit of a hamstring (issue) he felt after the game at Old Trafford, but doesn’t seem too bad at the moment. Thilo as you know was sick, but he’s travelling with us as well. I’m brining Maxi Cornet with me. He played the other night but I generally think he’s not ready to play yet, but I’m bringing him with me to be in the squad but I think he’s a wee bit away yet. Maybe more likely to be ready after the international games, but I’ve got him with me. That’s probably a lowdown of what I’ve got. Angelo Ogbonna has picked up a bit of a medial ligament injury in the game, which we took him off with, more as a precaution. I think Angelo will be okay and he will be with us as well.
How is Vladimir Coufal’s heel injury?
He’s not with us because he’s got plantar fascia in his heel. Look, time will help it but he’s not available for the game, no.
What are you expecting from AEK Larnaca?
I’m expecting an incredibly tough game from a side who I feel at the moment have got good momentum in their league. They were top of their league, I know they’ve just dropped off a result on Monday, but they won at the weekend. They’ve got an experienced team, they’ve also got a team which have played quite a lot in Europe, started in I think the Champions League, went into the Europa League and now find themselves in the Conference League in one season. From that point of view, I think they’re a side which have got some experience in these competitions. In football, you just never know. It sounds easy to say a Premier League team versus a Cyrpiot team, but I’ve certainly got no way of thinking that’s the case. We are going into the game as if we’re playing any other team. We’ve played a lot of really good teams from Belgium or wherever we’ve played recently over the last couple of years. We will treat this game in the exact same way we have treated any of the other games.
A good chance to use your squad and build competition for places?
I think especially with what we need to do and that we’ve got another game at the weekend on Sunday, so it gives me a chance to have a look at what we’ve got, see where players are already and it also gives players big opportunities to show what they can do.
How much is the team looking forward to playing in Europe again, with many of this season’s best results being in the Europa Conference League?
I agree, we’ve had some brilliant results in Europe this year. Some really good performances and a little bit to hang on to, it’s given us a bit of confidence in some of the games we’ve had and how the team played. We will try to take that into this game and move on quickly. We had a great result against Nottingham Forest, we didn’t have one against Brighton, that’s a little bit of the way we are at the moment, we need to get that a little bit better, consistency and a bit more steady all round really. Overall, if we can keep up the form in Europe that we’ve had and that we’ve done in the past will be terrific. We’re going to be going into that game with that mindset to try and do it again. Also, with the knowledge that we’ve got another second leg to play as well which is at home and we hope to try and use it to our advantage.
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