- Robert Snodgrass says West Ham United want to record back-to-back wins at Sunderland
- Hammers scored vital 1-0 Premier League victory over Swansea City last time out
- Scotland winger says another three points keep West Ham in hunt for top-ten finish
Robert Snodgrass says West Ham United are determined to build on their vital 1-0 win over Swansea City and set the foundations for a top-ten finish.
The Scotland midfielder was an important part of the Hammers’ hard-fought victory over the Swans a week ago, when his industry and calmness in tight situations helped keep Iceland star Gylfi Sigurdsson quiet.
If West Ham can score consecutive victories for the first time since January by beating Sunderland, they could rise into the top ten and all but secure their Premier League status in the process. Whatever happens at the Stadium of Light, the No11 insists Slaven Bilic’s side will keep working until the final whistle blows at Burnley on 21 May.
“We take each game as it comes, and I certainly don’t think we can say ‘if we beat Sunderland we can take our foot off the gas’,” Snodgrass began. “That’s not what it’s all about.
“It’s about trying to build on each performance and the level of performance against Swansea was very good, so why not keep going and try and better that at Sunderland? First and foremost, we want to try and get the three points and then keep building from that.
“We’ve got to go and do it by winning the games we’ve got left, trying to get some good results for the fans, for the staff and for your teammates, to have the good feeling by being able to say ‘We did finish in the top ten’ and we’ll try to build on that next season."
Snodgrass said the squad took great pride in the way they played through the pressure against Swansea to keep their first clean sheet in 12 matches and score their first win in eight.
Indeed, the 29-year-old said the Hammers were rewarded for their positive approach to a match that they simply had to win.
We take each game as it comes, and I certainly don’t think we can say ‘if we beat Sunderland we can take our foot off the gas’
Robert Snodgrass
“The manager said it would be a lot easier for us if we won that game because we’d be able to look up towards the top ten, where this club should be, rather than towards the bottom. It was a good win for us, and the way we won it as well was good.”
“There are certain games where you feel the tension and that was certainly one of them because, if we’d lost, we’d have gone to Sunderland worrying about losing again.
“There are loads of things behind it, but I think the way we approached the game and the way we were in the game, there was only one team who was going to go on and win it.
“As football players, you’re paid to play under that pressure and a lot of players like it and are fine with it, while some don’t like it, but when you saw that game you could see there was one team enjoying playing in the game and trying to win it, and that was us.”
Having experienced the elation of victory for just the second time since joining from Hull City in January, the left-sided player is hoping to make it three this weekend.
“It doesn’t matter if it was that game or any game, you’ve always got a buzz around the place and it’s a better place to be around when you’ve won,” he observed.
“The manager and his staff are happy because of the win, and we work hard throughout the week to get that buzz and that winning feeling, because nobody likes losing.”