Alphonse Areola is determined to use Thursday’s UEFA Europa Conference League round of 16 first leg victory against AEK Larnaca as a springboard for the challenges ahead.
West Ham United return to action swiftly when they host Aston Villa on Sunday, with three vital Premier League points on the line.
Having taken a 2-0 lead in the Europa Conference League tie, Areola and his Hammers teammates want to take that positive energy into the next game.
The 30-year-old is set to start a Premier League game at London Stadium for the first time with the Club, as Łukasz Fabiański recovers from a fractured eye socket, and the Frenchman Is looking forward to the test.
“We scored quite early in the game on Thursday, so it was good for the team to have positive energy. We just scored and were focused to not have a goal against us," he said.
“We knew that AEK was an experienced team with experienced players. We were focused on us firstly and we worked on what we had to work on. We were ready to play against them and I think we showed that.
“Now we have to keep that momentum. We have to recover and then be ready for Sunday.”
Thursday’s win came courtesy of two strikes from Michail Antonio, and Areola was thrilled to see his teammate get amongst the goals in Cyprus.
He was also delighted to see Maxwel Cornet make his return, as the 26-year-old came off the bench to make a first appearance since suffering a calf injury in October.
“Michail is [always] trying to put those past me in training!” he smiled. “To see it from the back it was an unbelievable goal and I’m happy for everyone and him especially.
“He showed that he’s ready for the battle to help the team, so that’s good for everyone that we want to lift up positive things for the team.
“Maxwel too, he’s had quite a difficult time with his bad injury with his calf. He’s back, he showed a bit of skills on the pitch tonight and we hope he stays fit and be able to help the team.”
