Winston Reid has the experience of competitive summer football to draw upon should West Ham United qualify for the UEFA Europa League
With one round of Barclays Premier League matches left to play, West Ham United are in with a chance of qualifying for the UEFA Europa League.
The Hammers came into the final four games of the season sitting second in the Premier League Fair Play League table behind fifth-place Liverpool. Should the Reds finish no lower than sixth, and West Ham not suffer a disciplinary meltdown at St James’ Park, the Londoners could well be playing in continental competition next season.
Even if Liverpool lose at Stoke City and drop to seventh, West Ham could still be packing their bags if Arsenal defeat Aston Villa in the FA Cup final.
However, the one catch would be that the Hammers will kick-off their UEFA Europa League challenge on Thursday 2 July – a full five weeks before the start of the 2015/16 Barclays Premier League campaign.
One player who would not bat an eyelid at the early start is Winston Reid, who has plenty of experience of competitive summer football to draw upon. The No2 scored against Bangor City for Danish Superliga runners-up FC Midtjylland in the UEFA Cup first qualifying round first leg on 17 July 2008, helping set up a second qualifying round meeting with Manchester City, which the Danes lost on penalties.
“There are no easy games, it is tough,” warned the 26-year-old, who also appeared for New Zealand at the 2010 FIFA World Cup finals in South Africa. “The Club has to be ready, you can’t just go out there and put a willy-nilly team out there.
“When I was in Denmark, the season had already started in July, but the Premier League won’t have started and we might be coming up against teams who may have already started their season.”
One glance at the clubs who have already qualified for next season’s Europa League would whet the appetite of West Ham fans with a sense of adventure.
Many of those who have already secured their places did so through league position or winning their domestic cup competition, but Reid feels no sense of embarrassment should West Ham sneak in through the Fair Play ‘back door’.
However they qualify, however, the centre-back says the Hammers will need to add reinforcements to the squad to cope for what the Claret and Blue Army will hope is a long and busy final season at the Boleyn Ground.
“Whatever way you get in, it doesn’t matter I guess,” he said. “You are in the hat like everyone else and it is something the players should look forward to, especially the younger players, but also those who haven’t played in Europe before.
“It is obviously one of those things that the club and the players would look forward to, but it is going to take a massive effort from the squad to all pull together.
“European games means more matches and also starting the season earlier, but I guess we will have to cross that bridge when we come to it.”
West Ham will learn their fate shortly after the end of the 2015/16 Barclays Premier League season, when the final Fair Play Table is published. However, should Liverpool drop to seventh in the final table, the Hammers will have to wait until after the FA Cup final on 30 May to find out if they have qualified for next season’s UEFA Europa League.
England are one of three nations to have earned an extra European place for next season after finishing in the top three in the UEFA Fair Play Table. The Netherlands and Republic of Ireland will also send an extra team into the Europa League via the same route.
The Hammers came into the final four games of the season sitting second in the Premier League Fair Play League table behind fifth-place Liverpool. Should the Reds finish no lower than sixth, and West Ham not suffer a disciplinary meltdown at St James’ Park, the Londoners could well be playing in continental competition next season.
Even if Liverpool lose at Stoke City and drop to seventh, West Ham could still be packing their bags if Arsenal defeat Aston Villa in the FA Cup final.
However, the one catch would be that the Hammers will kick-off their UEFA Europa League challenge on Thursday 2 July – a full five weeks before the start of the 2015/16 Barclays Premier League campaign.
One player who would not bat an eyelid at the early start is Winston Reid, who has plenty of experience of competitive summer football to draw upon. The No2 scored against Bangor City for Danish Superliga runners-up FC Midtjylland in the UEFA Cup first qualifying round first leg on 17 July 2008, helping set up a second qualifying round meeting with Manchester City, which the Danes lost on penalties.
“There are no easy games, it is tough,” warned the 26-year-old, who also appeared for New Zealand at the 2010 FIFA World Cup finals in South Africa. “The Club has to be ready, you can’t just go out there and put a willy-nilly team out there.
“When I was in Denmark, the season had already started in July, but the Premier League won’t have started and we might be coming up against teams who may have already started their season.”
One glance at the clubs who have already qualified for next season’s Europa League would whet the appetite of West Ham fans with a sense of adventure.
Many of those who have already secured their places did so through league position or winning their domestic cup competition, but Reid feels no sense of embarrassment should West Ham sneak in through the Fair Play ‘back door’.
However they qualify, however, the centre-back says the Hammers will need to add reinforcements to the squad to cope for what the Claret and Blue Army will hope is a long and busy final season at the Boleyn Ground.
“Whatever way you get in, it doesn’t matter I guess,” he said. “You are in the hat like everyone else and it is something the players should look forward to, especially the younger players, but also those who haven’t played in Europe before.
“It is obviously one of those things that the club and the players would look forward to, but it is going to take a massive effort from the squad to all pull together.
“European games means more matches and also starting the season earlier, but I guess we will have to cross that bridge when we come to it.”
West Ham will learn their fate shortly after the end of the 2015/16 Barclays Premier League season, when the final Fair Play Table is published. However, should Liverpool drop to seventh in the final table, the Hammers will have to wait until after the FA Cup final on 30 May to find out if they have qualified for next season’s UEFA Europa League.
England are one of three nations to have earned an extra European place for next season after finishing in the top three in the UEFA Fair Play Table. The Netherlands and Republic of Ireland will also send an extra team into the Europa League via the same route.