Reaction to the UEFA Europa Conference League draw
“I’ve actually just seen it. I’ve been in doing some work there and I’ve come out and they’ve shown me the draw. Good. Good, I’m looking forward to it. Let’s say, I think there’s some good teams in it. I think we’ve had quite a difficult draw in our group but looking forward to it.”
Anderlecht is a bit of a standout
“Yeah, I think so. I mean look, we’ll go back. We actually stayed in Silkeborg last night, or the day before I should say, so we’re up there so we know the level of the games we’re gonna get in Denmark, which was tough the one we had. We also know that going to Bucharest is not easy either, I’ve been there before so never easy but anyway, great to be in it and exciting times again.”
Good trips for the fans as well
“Yeah, the distances are not too far so I think it’s really important that the supporters can try and get to the games relatively easily and hopefully relatively cheaply as well.”
Those two qualifying games against Viborg, those qualifying games can be quite tricky at times. But did they come at the right time for you to be able to give time for players coming back from injury and also to integrate some of the new signings into the squad?
“Yeah, definitely, I think to get to give the new boys a chance to get playing with us to see a bit more about them. Look, there was a lot of games. If you weren’t in it then you would have had League Cup ties which we saw, [you] know most of the Premier League teams have and all the clubs will be using the players that maybe not started yet, a lot of new players will be getting minutes. So the play-off for us was really important and we wanted to get through we wanted to be in the group stages. So we couldn’t take many chances. We went strong enough in the games but thankfully the players got a really good result last night, which got us through.”
One player who did stand out was Gianluca [Scamacca]. Two starts two goals, is he knocking on the door now for a start Sunday?
“He has been knocking on the door for a while. I think it’s getting him not just his fitness and getting him ready but it’s getting him ready for Premier League football. So it’s a big change. So we have to try and look at him and see what we think the right games for him at the moment, when we think the right opportunity comes around. But certainly we feel as if we’ve got someone who we’re looking forward to working with for a long time so we don’t need to rush him. But is he getting ready? Yes. Getting much closer to fitness now.”
Does he want to be rushed though?
“I think all players want to be but actually I sense that there’s a lot of players who come in wanting a chance to look at it and see it and find out exactly how the team plays and what we want them to do. So that can take a little bit of time as well.”
New transfers, what’s the latest situation with Lucas Paqueta?
“Probably, I learn as much from Sky as I do from anyone else. The truth is we’re waiting on more information. I know we’ve made a second offer for him and we’re hoping to try and get a deal but at the moment I’ve got no more updates for you.”
What sort of qualities does a player like that or can a player like that bring to the side?
“Do you not think that would be a better question after we’ve got him, if we do get him? No point in talking about a player at another club while we’ve not got him.”
Does being linked to a player of his calibre just show the ambition of the club and also where the level that West Ham’s at right now?
“We’ve really tried to be incredibly ambitious, all through the transfer window, the board the club, all the staff here we’ve really tried to go ambitious and get good players. We think we’ve got that, we really do. We’re trying to just pull it all together and get it sort of working. But we do think we’ve brought in some good players. We just needed a little bit of grace to try and get them all going in one direction.”
With the transfer window closing next week, is there still room for improvement? Just one of the areas you’re looking to improve on.
“Well we brought in a lot of players at the moment probably more than I really want to bring in but I sort of mentioned that last week to my reasons why I thought the changes had to take place. I thought we needed to try and move on, we had to slightly break up what we’ve had. And we’re trying to do that. Again. We’re trying to build, build another good team at the moment. But will we do anymore? I’m not sure yet.”
There was a report that so far this transfer window there’s been £1.5billion spent by Premier League clubs, more than any other season, and obviously, still a week to go in the transfer window. Why do you think so much has been spent this summer?
“Well, I think the prices are dearer. I think sometimes Sky up the price instead of meeting it correct, it’s only my opinion, so getting the right players is really important because you know, when you put the prices out of the cost of the players I think that just makes it you know, we are all trying to spend the money wisely as correctly as we can. I think there’s been a lot more money about at the top level to spend. And the challenge for the teams to be at the top is so big, you know the quality of the players that some of the teams have signed is so so good so it makes it another difficult Premier League season.”
Can I ask you why you think Sky up the value of the values of players?
“I can only give you what I’ve seen from our players and I know the prices we’re actually doing so maybe they just don’t have all the correct information in the correct prices.”
Looking forward to Sunday. Team News. Is there an update?
“We’re getting people back fit. I don’t think we’ve picked up any injuries from our midweek encounter. So hopefully we’ll all be ready to go again.”
Kurt Zouma, was it good to get him some minutes last night?
“He’s had plenty of minutes at the moment. We just felt that we wanted to give him a little, turn his legs over for a while and get them back out there. Yeah.”
A comprehensive victory and a clean sheet last night. How much of a boost can your players take for that ahead of Sunday’s trip to Aston Villa?
“Well, I hope we take lots of confidence from last night because it was lots of good things. Obviously we’re getting goalscorers again and scoring is a big thing. So there were some good signs. But again, as I said before, we are sort of piecing little bits together at the moment. We’re trying to pull the team back together. And we’ve got a really difficult game at Aston Villa.”
It’s a big game for both sides, the table is still taking shape. We’ve seen how one positive result can change momentum, look at Manchester United. With that in mind, how important is it that you kick-start your season at Villa Park?
“It’s hugely important. We’ll do everything we can to get started. We want to play well, we want to win and you know, you need good performances to get results in at the moment of performances haven’t been good enough to get the results. So we need to up our performance level. And look, I said a few times we’re beginning to see signs of it improving and I hope that we can continue to do that.”
Why do you think performances haven’t been quite where you want them?
“I think partly due to us not getting everything maybe quite ready. Also, I think that we’ve lost the centre half which we’ve got to come in and we lost Craig Dawson as well with an injury. We’ve not quite had Angelo Ogbonna ready after a cruciate ligament. So we’ve suddenly found ourselves probably in all the games, even at the moment, with makeshift sort of back-lines. So I think that has played a big part in it as well.”
Is it a case of just getting that first point or that first win on the board? And then building very much from now onwards?
“I think we have to look at it that way. But also the challenge is for us to keep, you know, aiming at the top. That’s what we want to do. But at the moment we’ve got a job to do, we’ve got to try and win, win the next game, which is always the most important thing. And we’ll try and do that at Villa.”
You said your aims for the season as a whole, and it was still very early days, are towards the top six, potentially the top four, is that still very much the aim right now?
“I wouldn’t see any reason why we wouldn’t. I think we’ve got a group of players who can do that. And we’re willing to try and make that happen again.”
As for Aston Villa, what do you make of their start of the season and what are you expecting from Steven Gerrard’s side?
“I think Aston Villa got a really good side. I’ve been saying this for a few years. I think they’ve bought good players. I think they’ve got a good team. I think they’ve got some really, really talented players at the club. So I think Villa will have a good season of it. No doubt about that. But we have to be able to try and go there and win myself so we’ll see how it goes.”
It doesn’t get any easier. You got Spurs and then Chelsea looming on the horizon. With that in mind, how much of a reaction do you feel you want from your players this weekend to take forward into those games?
“Well, I can’t think about them until I get this one out the way. We got to do the Aston Villa game first. So first and foremost, concentrating on that, try and get a good victory. Try and get good performance, which I’ve mentioned would be good. So that’s my first aim.”
This time next week the transfer window will be closed. How do you think you’ll be feeling, will be maybe a sense of relief that you know who and what you’ll be working with the rest of the season at least until January?
“A little bit. I think we will. l I think we’ll all be pretty glad when the sort of madness behind the scenes stops. But overall, we’re getting a group put together. It’s taking a little bit longer than we’d like but quite often if you look at the history of teams in the UK, a lot of the transfers are done late. That’s why we have a day on Sky with yellow ties and all the stuff on transfer day and everybody quite enjoys it. But hopefully we will be ready and once we get everybody signed up we’ll get things going again.”
Do you enjoy that madness?
“I think a little bit but I’ve had a lot last minute day deals I should say but ideally it’s not the way you should do it. Ideally you’ve hopefully planned and are organised but it looks like us Brits don’t do that quite as well as maybe some of the other countries.”
So back in Europe again, which means you nnow, you’ve got at least another six fixtures on top of everything. Are you looking forward to that?
“Very much so. I mean, I’m complaining a wee bit about the Thursday-Sunday because you know, I know the difficulty it can bring but overall I’m really pleased that we’re back in Europe again. Two years in a row for West Ham to be in Europe. The supporters get a chance to go abroad and get to games. And after the journey last year, I think they’ll have a lot of sort of hope that we’ll do something similar again. I hope we’re able to do it. We’ve actually got I would look at a pretty difficult draw probably in the group at the moment, but we’ll see.”
Do Premier League managers need pressure to do their job successfully?
“Yeah, I think we sort of need the pressure. You need the adrenaline rush, from it. But I’ve got to say it’s a tough job for the Premier League managers. I’ve done over 1,000 games now and it requires a lot of effort and a lot of work into it. All. But I think that when you’re being successful, which means more games, like European games means more preparation, getting your teams ready, you know, more work to prepare yourself for it. So it takes a lot out of you. And that’s why you know, we’ve just got to be careful that we don’t overdo the players. And, and obviously the managers as well. The managers need to have a bit of a break from it as well.”
As a manager, you’ve managed over 1,000 games. This will actually be West Ham’s 1,000th game in the Premier League. You haven’t been here for all, you must be incredibly proud of what you’ve done during your time here.
“Look, I’m really pleased how we’ve brought the club on over the last two and a half years. I think that if you’d said to me this when I came in, I said would have said: ‘No you’re kidding, I don’t think we’ll do as well as that.’ But we’ve really knuckled down. We’ve kept at it. The players have been fantastic. And the club as well. I think the club have grown with it as well. And I think we’re trying to be one of the big clubs. We weren’t even a big club in the transfer market. We want to be a big club with the amount of supporters we bring into the stadium. So we’re doing a lot of things really, really well off the pitch. The club does brilliant work in the community. Really does in the east end of London. So I think there’s a lot of things which are going well. But ultimately, what’s really important is the results on the football pitch drive it all. We need to make sure that we get those results better.”
As has been already mentioned after that it is then Tottenham, Chelsea, and Newcastle so the opponents don’t get any easier, so I wonder does the slow start to the season feel like more cause for concern?
“Well, I think all those teams will be saying we’ve got West Ham to play that’s not an easy game. It’s not been an easy game for the last few years and hopefully we continue to make it that way. So there’s another side to it. But yeah, we have to get out performances better to get our results better. And actually think the Premier League, it’s such a level now, it’s hardly a game in it where you would say this looks as if you’ve got a chance of winning. I’ve not thought that for a long time. But certainly recently I think it’s become much much more competitive in the games and games are all very close.”
What did you make of the performance?
The performance, really, in truth, was not the most important thing today, the result was. Performances though lead to good results and our second half performance probably led to us having a chance of getting the result.
Was getting that first league win over the line that real priority?
I just think it was little bits in the second half where we were getting closer to looking like ourselves at times, not always, but a little bit like it and from that point of view, we know we’ve not cracked it yet but winning away from home in the Premier League this season, or winning at home this season is going to be really tough. The competition level in the league is really hard.
For a couple of weeks, you have mentioned going to a three/five at the back formation, why was it today that you opted to make the change?
I made that decision because I felt that it might have given us a chance of playing in a way in which we might have caused Villa problems, it was the exact opposite I think. Villa thrived in it. The good thing about it is we were incredibly resilient in the first half and we didn’t concede and in truth, there wasn’t many chances for both sides. I don’t think there was lots and lots of big chances in the game, so it was good that we gave ourselves a chance at 0-0 and we didn’t buckle in the first half.
How do you think Emerson did on his debut?
Emerson was fine, we just felt we couldn’t get him the ball, we didn’t get much service and we weren’t passing the ball well enough to really use him. I decided to make the change at half-time.
Heading into a week where you play Tottenham Hotspur and Chelsea, how vital was that win?
It’s one win, it doesn’t mean an awful lot. You have to start somewhere, but we had a win in midweek as well. Everybody who follows the Thursday/Sunday football will tell you how difficult it is to win on a Sunday after a Thursday game, so if you put that in the mix as well, you have to say it is a really good result for us to come to Villa Park and get a win today.
How is Ben Johnson?
He just felt a tightness in his hamstring. Then again, you look at that and Cressy (Aaron Cresswell) was feeling his groin at the end of the game. It’s obviously because you are playing so quickly. You are pushing them back out again Thursday, Sundays, it is difficult. But, we are embracing it and I know I am sort of having a slight gripe at it but I think I am just trying to put in context where the players might be after a game on a Thursday night.
Do you feel better equipped for a busy schedule than last season due to the signings you have made, especially with almost two games a week every week until the World Cup?
I don’t think we’ve had the greatest run of the draw when you look at it. We’ve played Sunday, we’re playing Wednesday and we have got to play Saturday now, so if you are saying that and then look at that, you can’t say we’ve had a particularly fair run of games and when you think we have played Sunday and now today, they want us to play Wednesday and now we have got to play Saturday, so that is not easy for any side, never mind us who are just trying to get ourselves back up and running.
What have you made of Said Benrahma’s start to the season?
I think he has had a good start to the season, but he has also had a mixed start to the season. Some of his bits, he played against Brighton where we didn’t see quite as much. Today, we saw it, we had seen it in bits against Nottingham Forest, but we know what we have got with Said. Sometimes, he can frustrate you, sometimes, he can make the difference. I thought today, he made a big difference for us when he came on.
At half-time, you changed the game. Is that the difference between an experienced Premier League manager and someone less experienced like Steven Gerrard?
No, I thought Aston Villa played well at times, their football was excellent. It was nothing to do with experience, I think it was just me thinking I had to do something to make this team play much better, so I wouldn’t have put it down to him. Look, if I hadn’t changed it and I had lost the game, you might have been saying to me ‘what did you do that for? It was 0-0 at half-time. Sometimes, you have to take little bits of risks to take chances, some work and quite often, some don’t.
How did you think Gianluca Scamacca fared on his full Premier League debut?Do you think he grew into the game?
I actually thought we were just growing into it. I thought in truth, we probably gave him nothing in the first half, bits of scraps. We didn’t give him much service, we didn’t get any crosses into the box for him to try and attack the ball. Just before we took him off, we just started to show a little bit more and he showed a couple of signs. He’s one of the main Italian strikers, he’s young. I wouldn’t expect him to hit the ground running [straight away] exactly. I actually think it is harder for centre-forwards than probably any position on the field to do that. We like him, we have seen him, we like him. He gives us a presence, he’s good, he’s come in and scored a couple of goals which is a good sign for us.
What does that do for Michail Antonio? He seems to be relishing in the competition for places?
Great, which we want. I’ve said to Mick a few weeks ago ‘there’s no way we were changing Mick. Mick’s been so good. To try and do what Micky Antonio has done for us in the last two and a half years, it’d be very, very difficult for us to do that. What we need is somebody, which we have known for a while, where we can play one week and change and substitute, that’s what we did today. We didn’t have that option last year, which we had today, which was to bring Mick on with 30 minutes to go.
What is the latest with Lucas Paqueta?
I understand he’s had a medical today as well. I’ve not been able to confirm if it’s all good or all bad, so I will obviously hope it comes off because I think he is an excellent player. I think he can add something to us, I think he is another exciting player and we have bought in several players, and a lot of them are full internationals and talented internationals. We’ve got all sorts, a German international, I thought he played very well today, I’ve got to say. I thought Thilo Kehrer played really well for us today. He has just started coming in, so [we hope] to bring a Brazilian international in as well. It has been a difficult window but trying to add that something at a level which we hope can keep us up there, is what we’ve tried to do. I am thankful to the board and to the club for trying to make it get the best we can.
Was there any relief to get your first league win of the season due to the pressure on managers?
I don’t know how many wins I have had in the last two and a half years, so I would hope the people you are alluding to would be saying ‘I don’t know how many games I’ve won in the last two and a half years.’ We were avoiding relegation and now we are challenging for the top six and lost three games in the Premier League. We have also won a couple of games in Europe already. I’d like it to be much, much better. I’d like to be much better, I’d like to be playing better, but we are in the middle of trying to change and we’ve had to change some players around and keep up with the big boys and that is not easy because at the moment, it is keeping up with the boys at the bottom. If I can get these players in place in place and get them in a bit of rhythm, we can play much better.
West Ham United boss David Moyes does not want to get embroiled in a money-spending contest as he attempts to continue his growth of the club. West Ham’s Scottish boss has a huge focus on continued success, growth and sustainability, but would rather achieve this in multiple ways, including how the players are coached and the development of the academy, looking to sign lower-league players at times and develop them into big talents, as they did when signing Jarrod Bowen from Hull City in January 2020.
David Moyes said: “I think everybody wants to be in it (the European mix). If you look at what Newcastle United have done from a side who everyone was saying probably this time last year were probably on the verge of relegation and people. Suddenly, Newcastle have gone all the way. They have nearly gone up right the elevator as quick as they can with money. I’ve got to say, their team is doing very well, has done since January. I see other clubs trying to find other ways of doing it, you are seeing different models in Brighton for example. What we don’t want is money to be the key thing that makes you a great football club. I don’t want that to be the way anyway. I want there to be great coaching, great youth development, good recruitment and players can come up through different levels. You can be playing in the lower leagues and get taken up by a club who eventually get into the first team and develop international players, so I really don’t want it to become whose got the biggest purse, I really don’t want that. I won’t be the one that decides that.”
While Scamacca, Aguerd and potentially Paqueta could be deemed as marquee signings, Downes is one for the long-term, with Moyes jokingly comparing the different styles of recruitment to shopping at luxury shops like Harrods, as well as more cost-effective supermarkets such as Aldi
David Moyes added: “I think it is something which we do. I think West Ham have got a good academy, we’re trying to build it. Also, we’re not always shopping in Harrods, sometimes we shop in Aldi, if that is the right way to put it. I think that is part of it. While we are always building the club, we will be looking to buy players at different levels and trying to challenge the big boys and because of that, we know we need to try and get some top players.”
