David Moyes said West Ham United’s players and supporters inspired one another to Saturday's fantastic 3-0 Premier League win over Southampton.
With a capacity London Stadium crowd roaring the Hammers on, Joao Mario and Marko Arnautovic fired the hosts two goals clear within 17 minutes before the Austrian completed the scoring with an outstanding team move with a rasping volley on the stroke of half-time.
Moyes was pleased with what he witnessed and thanked his players for their performances and the Club’s committed fans for their vociferous and positive backing.
“I’ve got to say we made a great start and we had great support from the first minute and I think it inspired the players as well,” he started. “The players had a really good go right at the start and thankfully we got a couple of early goals and the third goal just before half-time made a big difference as well.
“We think we’re good enough to be up there [in 14th], but we dropped down as our recent results have not been good enough. Thankfully today’s was.
“The supporters were great and I think they have been great here. There are one or two who maybe [weren’t], like happened in the last game, but overall the atmosphere in the stadium has been terrific, it really has.
“The players gave them something to shout about today. The players showed how much they cared after the way things went in the last home game.”
We made a great start and we had great support from the first minute and I think it inspired the players as well
David Moyes
While every single West Ham player, to a man, did their job superbly well, Arnautovic was the star of the show.
The No7 has now scored 12 goals in his last 16 appearances for Club and country, while his brace on Saturday took his Premier League tally to nine in his last 13 top-flight games.
After another virtuoso performance, Moyes was certainly pleased with the centre forward’s contribution, as he was with Arthur Masuaku on his return from a six-match suspension.
“We think Marko is doing a terrific job. He’s been great since he went up front. He missed a big chance before his first goal or he could easily have had a hat-trick, but that’s Marko and he’s capable of doing it and he’s making a big difference, I have to say. I thought his performance was great.
“I’m enjoying working with him because he is scoring me goals and playing well and he’s also shown the West Ham supporters and the Club why they paid £20 million for him from Stoke in the summer.
“Arthur’s cross for the third goal was great. It was a brilliant counter attack and we got the ball out with quick play. Overall, our first half performance was very good and the players deserve a lot of credit.”
In closing, Moyes said he will find out more about the severity of Michail Antonio’s hamstring injury, which the No30 suffered in the opening ten minutes, on Sunday.