Ahead of the Hammers’ fixture with Everton, Slaven Bilic faced the media.
Ahead of the Hammers’ fixture with Everton, manager Slaven Bilic faced the media.
The boss answered a variety of questions from team news, facing his former club Everton and how bouncing back from the Watford defeat.
Good morning Slaven, can we start with Saturday’s team news?
SB: "Diafra Sakho is still out, it is nothing major, he did normal training on Thursday last week but then felt something in his thigh. Unfortunately it is a small tear and he is out for Saturday’s game. He should be back for our first game after the international break.
"It’s a set back because he’s a very important player for us, he does a lot for the team and the way we are playing. He has energy, he is impulsive and he dictates the rhythm of the game."
How about Alex Song?
SB: "He has just started training with the team, his first session was just before the Watford game, he’s been with us for one week and he has no problems now. Now I is just a matter of fitness and regaining match fitness. He will play in the friendly game on Wednesday; he is a naturally fit guy so hopefully he will back ready soon."
And Winston Reid?
SB: "He is OK, he picked up an injury against Sunderland, but now has recovered well. He is very important for us so we are happy to have him back."
Is facing Everton a special game for you?
SB: "Yes, on one hand yes, on the other no. Every game is special for different reasons. Everton are a great side, big club with good players. It’s a great test for us and I am looking forward to it, definitely yes."
I don’t if you are aware but West Ham have one win against Everton in 17 games, how important is that?
SB: "That is a lot, it must be eight years or so. I didn’t know that to be fair, but it shows how difficult Saturday’s game will be. It’s a bit of a surprise to me but it doesn’t worry me too much because those games are in the past. It will only affect us if we allow it to, if we think about it too much then it might have an impact on confidence, but we should be able to deal with that.
"Every game is different, and you have to go and prove yourself from the first whistle every time."
And is Enner Valencia getting closer to starting a match?
SB: "Yes he is, we’ve got options at the moment. From a fitness perspective he is in a good way, he just needs to get his match fitness up. He is very close to being ready, but it depends which game that’ll be. We will make a decision either today or tomorrow about who starts."
Everton will be very confident after winning 6-2, you’re obviously coming off the back of a defeat, how import could that be?
SB: "Everton played very well against Sunderland, deserved to win the game, so they will be confident and they have the momentum. They were a bit shaky for a home performance, 2-0 up to then being 2-2, but came through it and then dominated, every attack they had looked dangerous. Our game against Watford was strange, not for the Premier League, but for us. We weren’t near to our usual levels but overall we look dangerous too, we are scoring quite a lot.
"We lost at Watford, but we know why we lost and we can learn from that and make sure it doesn’t happen again."
The boss answered a variety of questions from team news, facing his former club Everton and how bouncing back from the Watford defeat.
Good morning Slaven, can we start with Saturday’s team news?
SB: "Diafra Sakho is still out, it is nothing major, he did normal training on Thursday last week but then felt something in his thigh. Unfortunately it is a small tear and he is out for Saturday’s game. He should be back for our first game after the international break.
"It’s a set back because he’s a very important player for us, he does a lot for the team and the way we are playing. He has energy, he is impulsive and he dictates the rhythm of the game."
How about Alex Song?
SB: "He has just started training with the team, his first session was just before the Watford game, he’s been with us for one week and he has no problems now. Now I is just a matter of fitness and regaining match fitness. He will play in the friendly game on Wednesday; he is a naturally fit guy so hopefully he will back ready soon."
And Winston Reid?
SB: "He is OK, he picked up an injury against Sunderland, but now has recovered well. He is very important for us so we are happy to have him back."
Is facing Everton a special game for you?
SB: "Yes, on one hand yes, on the other no. Every game is special for different reasons. Everton are a great side, big club with good players. It’s a great test for us and I am looking forward to it, definitely yes."
I don’t if you are aware but West Ham have one win against Everton in 17 games, how important is that?
SB: "That is a lot, it must be eight years or so. I didn’t know that to be fair, but it shows how difficult Saturday’s game will be. It’s a bit of a surprise to me but it doesn’t worry me too much because those games are in the past. It will only affect us if we allow it to, if we think about it too much then it might have an impact on confidence, but we should be able to deal with that.
"Every game is different, and you have to go and prove yourself from the first whistle every time."
And is Enner Valencia getting closer to starting a match?
SB: "Yes he is, we’ve got options at the moment. From a fitness perspective he is in a good way, he just needs to get his match fitness up. He is very close to being ready, but it depends which game that’ll be. We will make a decision either today or tomorrow about who starts."
Everton will be very confident after winning 6-2, you’re obviously coming off the back of a defeat, how import could that be?
SB: "Everton played very well against Sunderland, deserved to win the game, so they will be confident and they have the momentum. They were a bit shaky for a home performance, 2-0 up to then being 2-2, but came through it and then dominated, every attack they had looked dangerous. Our game against Watford was strange, not for the Premier League, but for us. We weren’t near to our usual levels but overall we look dangerous too, we are scoring quite a lot.
"We lost at Watford, but we know why we lost and we can learn from that and make sure it doesn’t happen again."