David Moyes
What did you make of the result?
Really pleased with the result. Bits of the performance were very good as well, so we’re really happy with that. The only difference between probably all of the other performances was scoring two goals in the game. We have probably played as well in I don’t know how many other games, maybe another eight or 10 games but we just haven’t been able to get the goals. Today, we just got a couple of goals which made a hell of a difference.
How relieved are you to have won this game?
If you are indicating it is a relief to me, I think it’s a relief to the whole club. We all want to win, the club itself and everybody in the club and it was a big result for everyone connected with the club. I have to say, the players earned it, they recognise the situation they are in and we are working to get the club away from where we are.
How do you go about entering this game with the amount of pressure on yourselves with the experience you have?
I have to say, I think probably the biggest strength I’ve had is I’ve had a board behind me who have been really supportive, have backed me, maybe made it a lot easier. If it was different, you would maybe ask me a different question, but I still believe there are some things the board don’t want to do, they don’t want to make any changes so I had great confidence. I also believed that I would win today, I did. I thought that I’d win today and I thought we have to turn the tide, we can’t keep going the way it has been. I thought Danny Ings’ introduction yesterday as well gave us all a little bit of a good feeling that things could change and for that, it worked out well. But also my experience as well has got me to the stage where I am saying ‘okay, these things can happen.’ I’m quite cool about the thing but obviously inside, I’m obviously wanting to win because I’m so disappointed that I’ve not been able to win for the past seven/eight games or whatever it’s been now.
What can you still realistically achieve this season, being in the Europa Conference League and the FA Cup?
To be in European football in March, for West Ham to be in Europe two years back-to-back finishing sixth and seventh in the Premier League, you look at how difficult it is at the moment, you look at the standard of the teams you play against. We have had a couple of extraordinary years and we are all disappointed because we’ve not been able to reach that height this year but I genuinely believe that given time, I think if you watched today, I thought Nayef Aguerd was fantastic with how he played. I think Lucas Paqueta, people are beginning to see more of what he is about. I think we do need time to let some of them settle in and hopefully we can build that team. We broke it up a little bit last year to try and make it better, not quite done that yet but hopefully, we are on the right track now.
How annoying was it for you and for Frank Lampard with the game being billed the way it was?
I think when you’re in the job, you understand that in football management, it’s a fair game. I think though if I am being really honest, for one man to come in here and ask another man about his job in the world we live in at the moment I think isn’t the right thing to do. I guess you’ve all got editors or people who are wanting and telling you to ask that question because of the position we are in, we have to take that and get on with it. But, I would hate to think that Everton would go down because they have meant so much to me over the years and obviously all I’m doing at the minute is to get West Ham in the best position as I can and try and win a trophy as well.
What did you make of Nayef Aguerd’s performance? How tough has it been not having him available for much so far?
I think he’s probably started three or four games. I thought today was probably signs that people could see [him]. I thought he defended really well against a strong, powerful Everton side at set-pieces. I thought he passed the ball out very well from the back. I thought he had a couple of great diagonal passes which relieved the pressure on us a little bit as well at different times and I think he’s a very stylish player. Again, he’s going to take time to get used to going to the grounds and what the Premier League is like and the centre forward level he is going to come up against but I thought he played well today. I thought all of the defenders played well today, to be fair.
Is part of that pressure on clubs as a whole due to the value of being in the Premier League financially?
I do agree with your question. I think that the money involved in being a Premier League club is such a big thing, it really is, for all the clubs. I’m not still sure that that makes it an excuse to ask the question but I understand that people who work have to ask those questions because they are employed to do it as well. I still think in my mind, for the protection of managers, I think sometimes they are seen as fair game and you say ‘hang on a minute here’. I really hope Everton stick with Frank. I think he is a top bloke from our conversations and the times I’ve been with him and I hope that Everton find a way out of the situation, but I have got to first of all think about my position because me winning one game doesn’t mean that everything is fine. All I will say is that I’ve had brilliant support from the board the whole time and I’ve got to say, they’ve really helped. Even buying Danny Ings yesterday shows you they want to help and do everything they possibly can.
