David Moyes
Have you had to lift the mood a little bit following the draw with Brighton?
No, we played really well against Brighton. We played very well and it was just a day where we didn’t score and we have scored a lot this season in lots of games so I think we played well in that game and I was very positive with a lot of things we had done.
Is a factor you keep reminding yourself of the amount of progress you have made and to still be in with a shot of European football with a couple of games to go is something you view positively?
Definitely, as you say, progress has been made. We have made progress from the start of the season and certainly from this time last year so we have to be really pleased with that. The players are continually improving, I see it every day they have been hard at it and are keeping it going so I have to give them great credit for what they have done this season.
If you were to get into Europe next season where would that rank in terms of your achievements?
If we had been good enough to qualify for the Champions League I think it would have been the biggest achievement. We have got a chance of European football of some sort and I think that would be a great achievement if we do that, I couldn’t really tell you where I see it ranking but I set high standards for myself and the players and the players know that I have been pushing hard for us to try and be high up the league and at this moment in time they have done that.
How much are you looking forward to walking out with fans in the ground again?
It’s what we want. I think right from the start everybody has found the games really sterile, whether it be the managers, the players, the broadcasters, we have all missed football supporters. Right at the start we did say that football is for the supporters and we wanted them back quickly, but obviously, it has been a difficult situation. I think it has been managed as well it possibly can be and I think we have been able to give football to the people who want to watch it regularly, maybe too regularly if you are a manager or a player but overall we are really hoping that at the start of next season we are back to full crowds.
West Brom are already relegated but having their crowd in gives them a bit of added incentive, does that make your task a little bit tougher?
Yes, I believe so, I think you have seen a lot of clubs who have suffered without their supporters in the stadium and we have seen some results which might have gone differently with supporters being in. It might the case for West Brom, maybe they needed their support there at The Hawthorns. What we need to do is to go there and play and get back used to it [the crowd]. Sam [Allardyce] has come in and steadied West Brom and took them very close to being safe.
How big will Roy Hodgson’s shoes be to fill at Crystal Palace?
First of all, I need to say I am sad to hear that Roy is stepping away, and it might not be he is retiring, but I have to say his longevity, his professionalism, as a man he is a terrific man who I have known for a long time. I really admire what he has done and I think for him to continually keep his teams away from relegation and the standards he has had in recent years have been terrific. We will miss him, but I said the other week I don’t know if I could go on as long as Roy or Sir Alex [Ferguson]. It takes a special person to go on that long and to have that longevity means you have done a really good job.
How would you view the speculation that Harry Kane might be potentially towards the end of his time at Tottenham?
Nothing to do with me, not my club. He is a very good player but it is nothing to do with me and I would never speculate on players from another club I don’t think you should do that.
How much improvement is there in your squad that we are talking about European as opposed to relegation?
I hoped that we could get to the last couple of games of the season with an opportunity like this and we have and we have got ourselves in a really good position and it has been an immense season. We have not quite reached the best total of points that West Ham have in a Premier League season but we are very close to it, so that gives you an idea of where our level of performance has been. The big thing is the progress. As a club, we have made progress, we have probably taken a bigger step this year than what we thought so the idea is to continue making small steps and to continue making things better behind the scenes and on the pitch and hopefully building a club which will last and improve as we go on.
How wary of West Brom are you tomorrow evening?
It would be completely wrong or disrespectful to think that any club in the Premier League that because they are relegated, that makes you think that they’re not trying or working as hard. You only need to look at Sheffield United’s result the other night [Everton 0-1 Sheffield United]. Every game in the Premier League right up until the last it is tough, it doesn’t matter who you are playing. Everybody wants to win, West Brom played really well and were unfortunate not to take something the other night.
Any injury concerns ahead of tomorrow evening?
No, not really, what we have got is what we have got. We still have a problem with Manuel Lanzini but hopefully, most of them are getting closer to fitness.
Are you always aiming to have West Ham competing at this level because of the size of the football club?
I think the message I have been trying to get out is we have made a big step this year, we have got higher up the league and we now need to try and get a level of consistency so I am hoping that we can build on what we have done this year and become a good side next year challenging if possible. But if not then we have to get the stability to a club which has been a little bit unstable or too close to the bottom in years gone by and dropped out of the league as well. So we have to try and get rid of that. I think this year we have shown that we are a good side and we have been a match for just about every side we have played. The biggest thing is that we have made progress. We have made progress in our physicality, our stamina, our football. There have been so many improvements in our team this year and we hope we continue in that form.
I guess that you will not spend too much time patting yourself on the back for what you have achieved as you want to keep driving yourself on?
I remember saying last year if I avoided relegation I would not celebrate, because why would you celebrate avoiding relegation at a club like West Ham? So we didn’t. But we still felt like it was an achievement from the position we were in when we came. I think if we made European football it would be worthy of a celebration because it is such a big step we have made in one year but you are always trying to get more. In this job you are always trying to push more and get further up the league if you can so we might enjoy a couple of beers if we make Europe after Sunday’s game.
You mentioned Roy Hodgson’s longevity, do you think we are ever going to see that longevity ever again and can you give me an update on your contract as we have only got a week of the season to go?
First I will congratulate Roy Hodgson on an incredible time at Crystal Palace and an incredible career in management with what he has done over the years. I was really fortunate when I was doing my Pro Licence, which was a long time ago, where you always had to have a foreign visit and I visited Udinese where Roy was the manager. Roy and his wife really looked after me, he involved me in all the stuff and took me out for dinner numerous times, so I have good memories of Roy over the years and obviously competing against him when he was manager of Liverpool as well when I was at Everton. Over the years we have crossed paths, but his level of longevity has been incredible. Managers sometimes take a year or so out every so often and go in and out because to continue to do it year on year is very hard. We’re pretty well down the lane with my contract and I hope that we’ll get something confirmed. It is more likely to be after the end of the season before we do anything. We don’t really want anything to get in the way of what we’re doing just now.
Would you still see the Europa Conference League as being a massive success and would you embrace it like you would the Europa or the Champions League?
Yes. I am wary about a third European competition, I start to think of things like the Inter-Toto Cup and things that were around a long time ago. I remember going to watch a couple of games in Glasgow at the time so I am wary of that. But I think that if you are rewarded with European football for finishing high up the league then it is praise for you and showing what you have done. We are in a really difficult league, we are looking at teams in the Champions League and the quality of the teams in the Europa League this year. I have to say we are in a difficult league so if we end up finishing in that competition I don’t think we will be disappointed. Maybe next year when we are playing Thursdays and Sundays I might think differently.
Will you need a much bigger squad if you are in Europe? How busy summer will it be for you off the pitch?
I would like to answer with more clarity but we actually don’t know at the moment. I don’t think we are going to have lots of money but that is going to be the same in most clubs, so we are preparing for that. Things can change and we will see if we are good enough to make European football, we might need extra players, we might decide not. We have worked this year with a pretty small squad and have only really picked up pretty serious injuries probably since the last international break, so apart from that we have been pretty good so I hope that continues. Obviously, we would like to add and make some new signings if we can.
