Vladimir Coufal has said that West Ham United’s confidence of a top-six finish has not dimmed after yesterday’s 2-0 defeat away to Brentford.
Vladimir Coufal said: “The Premier League is a difficult league. Everyone can beat everyone. We will see. Top four is more of a dream than a goal. Our real goal should be top six or to get into Europe next season, whichever way we can do that. It doesn’t matter how we reach it but our goal is to reach European football. [The Brentford defeat] doesn’t change our confidence.”
The Czech Republic full back also revealed that the hernia had been troubling him since last summer’s European Championship and he played through discomfort for the first six and a half months of the season.
Vladimir Coufal said: “I was struggling since the start of the season. It started in the Euros but I didn’t pay attention because I thought it would pass. After it was more serious and more serious and I was still playing. It was no excuse for form.”
As for his recovery,
Vladimir Coufal added: “I worked really hard for six weeks. The first prediction was to return after six weeks. After five weeks I was ready to play. Professor Ernest Schilders did an amazing job with the surgery. Rich and George [West Ham’s medical staff] looked after me and did an amazing job. I need to thank them because they looked after me like their kids. Also I need to thank my wife because for the five days after the surgery I was like a third kid. I couldn’t do anything. I could only lie on the sofa, it was unpleasant because it was so painful. Now hopefully I will be healthy again and enjoy playing again.”
