West Ham United manager David Moyes admits the club may have to sacrifice their potential success in this season’s Europa Conference League amid their current battle in the Premier League’s relegation zone.
The Hammers head into the weekend 18th in the Premier League table and a point shy of safety with just 12 league matches remaining in their 2022/23 league campaign, just a point clear of bottom of the table and Sunday’s opponents Southampton.
While the Premier League season has been well below the targets of a third-straight top-seven finish, West Ham have still kept up their impressive recent record in Europe, winning all 10 of their matches in the Europa Conference League this season to set up a quarter-final tie against Belgian side KAA Gent later this month.
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Last season, West Ham found themselves weighing up selection dilemmas in the final months of the season as they reached the semi-finals of the Europa League, knocking out Olympique Lyonnais and Sevilla before being knocked out at the last four stage by Eintracht Frankfurt.
As Moyes manoeuvred the Hammers into the final stages of the Europa League, West Ham were battling for another top-six finish, which would have seen them qualify for the Europa League once again, missing out by just two points.
This time around though, there is so much more at stake, namely survival in the Premier League. Moyes says that the Premier League is the priority and that because of West Ham’s fight in the relegation battle, European football may have to get put on the backburner.
"There is a worry because we have got ourselves into such a good position and been so strong in Europe. We have been able to change the team in Europe and it has worked really well for us," he said.
"This time last year, when we had games against Seville and Frankfurt, we needed our best teams to win.
"But last year in the Premier League the season was fine, we were trying to finish in the top six and just fell out of it on the last day of the season.
"So the truth is that it could have an effect on it because the Premier League is vital for us and we are going to have to try to plot our way through that and the European games.”
In an ideal world, Moyes will be able to quickly steer the Hammers clear of the relegation dogfight, allowing themselves to put more focus onto European football, being just five games away from a European trophy.
Moyes is hoping to get the Premier League season back on track, with seven league games to come in the space of 27 days, starting against Saints on Sunday. If not, however, the Premier League will require even more focus on it.
"I'm hoping we can pick up a couple of quick wins, which will mean we can go in to the European games stronger than what we have had in the past," the Scotsman added.
"But if not, the team we have played in Europe has done a brilliant job, whichever way we have juggled it about, as we have tended to do in the last couple of seasons.
"I'm looking forward to trying to make a semi-final in Europe for a second season in a row."
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