James Collins was left with a bitter-sweet feeling after
Wednesday night's 1-0 defeat against Manchester United at Old
Trafford.
The 22-year-old defender gave a solid and determined performance up against the likes of Ruud Van Nistelrooy, Wayne Rooney and Cristiano Ronaldo, but still ended up on the losing side following the Dutch striker's first-half goal, and admitted that it was strangely comforting to come away disappointed with a narrow defeat against the Premiership's form team.
"We knew it was going to be tough, and their boys up front have been on fire," he said. "You're thinking about Van Nistelrooy and Rooney but they've also got other great players coming from midfield and you can't take your eye off anyone.
"It's hard to come to Old Trafford and keep a clean sheet, because they have so much pressure in front of goal and great quality when they are in those positions.
"If I'm honest, we were a bit lucky to keep them just to one goal, but that doesn't take anything away from our performance and we are pleased that we gave a good account of ourselves."
With Anton Ferdinand available again after recovering from a groin injury, there was a suggestion that James would make way last night but, following his impressive displays against Manchester City and Wigan Athletic last week, the Welsh international was given the nod by Alan Pardew and was grateful for the chance to continue his progress.
"It was obviously nice to play," he says. "Gabbs and myself have done quite well in the last couple of games, and I was grateful that the gaffer showed faith in me.
"I'd only ever played at Old Trafford for Wales, when we lost 2-0 against England, so it hasn't been best of grounds for me, but I enjoyed the experience.
"I didn't come to West Ham to spend the whole season on the bench, and now that I've got my chance I'm determined to take it and stay in the team.
"I've been patient because, to be fair, Anton and Danny have been superb together, and I had no argument about being out of the team. Now I've got to keep trying to prove that I deserve to stay in."
The 22-year-old defender gave a solid and determined performance up against the likes of Ruud Van Nistelrooy, Wayne Rooney and Cristiano Ronaldo, but still ended up on the losing side following the Dutch striker's first-half goal, and admitted that it was strangely comforting to come away disappointed with a narrow defeat against the Premiership's form team.
"We knew it was going to be tough, and their boys up front have been on fire," he said. "You're thinking about Van Nistelrooy and Rooney but they've also got other great players coming from midfield and you can't take your eye off anyone.
"It's hard to come to Old Trafford and keep a clean sheet, because they have so much pressure in front of goal and great quality when they are in those positions.
"If I'm honest, we were a bit lucky to keep them just to one goal, but that doesn't take anything away from our performance and we are pleased that we gave a good account of ourselves."
With Anton Ferdinand available again after recovering from a groin injury, there was a suggestion that James would make way last night but, following his impressive displays against Manchester City and Wigan Athletic last week, the Welsh international was given the nod by Alan Pardew and was grateful for the chance to continue his progress.
"It was obviously nice to play," he says. "Gabbs and myself have done quite well in the last couple of games, and I was grateful that the gaffer showed faith in me.
"I'd only ever played at Old Trafford for Wales, when we lost 2-0 against England, so it hasn't been best of grounds for me, but I enjoyed the experience.
"I didn't come to West Ham to spend the whole season on the bench, and now that I've got my chance I'm determined to take it and stay in the team.
"I've been patient because, to be fair, Anton and Danny have been superb together, and I had no argument about being out of the team. Now I've got to keep trying to prove that I deserve to stay in."