Paul Konchesky knows that West Ham United Women will need to be at their very best if they are to get a positive result against Barclays Women’s Super League champions Chelsea on Wednesday evening.
The Hammers boss is hoping that his side can bounce back after losing 2-0 to Manchester United in their second WSL match of the campaign.
The Irons head out on the road for the first time this season and Konchesky is hoping to see another positive performance from the team.
"It’s another tough match, like every game in the WSL,” Konchesky told whufc.com. 'It’s a game we’ve been looking forward to, we want to have these tests against the top teams and see how we compare.
"We’ve had a good start to the season, particularly with our performances, which, overall, I have been pleased with.
"I hope to see another good one from the team on Wednesday, and hopefully, with a bit of luck, we will come away with something from the game.”
Against Manchester United, the Irons stood firm for the opening 45 minutes at the Chigwell Construction Stadium. The away side eventually netted through Lucia Garcia and Hannah Blundell during a five-minute stint early in the second half.
Konchesky praised the first-half work of his team in his post-match interview after the defeat to the Red Devils, and wants to see the Hammers replicate those efforts for the full 90 minutes on Wednesday.
“As I said on Sunday, we executed our gameplan perfectly in the first half on Sunday. We pressed high, we worked incredibly hard for one-another – I want to see the same again out there against Chelsea.
“It will be a slightly different game and we won’t have our home crowd cheering us on this time, but we have the opportunity to make Chelsea work hard for every ball, that is the minimum I expect.
“That’s exactly what my players have given me in the opening two games, and I’m hoping for more of the same.”
This fixture was scheduled to be the opening game of the new WSL season on Sunday 11 September and was to be played at Stamford Bridge.
However, football in the United Kingdom paused as a mark of respect after the passing of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II.
And with the game now being played in midweek, the Hammers boss believes the game will have a slightly different feel.
“It’s always a little bit different when you play an evening game, under the lights. They can be special matches and we have the opportunity to go to Chelsea and give them a real game.
"As a team, we know that we need to be clinical, be clever when we do have possession and make sure that we defend well. If we can do all of those things consistently, then I back us to put in a good showing."
