Paul Konchesky believes that his West Ham United Women’s side need to build momentum again, starting this weekend against Aston Villa in the Vitality Women’s FA Cup fifth round.
The Irons are back in action for the first time since their 7-0 defeat to Chelsea in the Continental Tyres League Cup, and Konchesky is keen for his side to get back playing to their best and put that defeat fully behind them.
With the February international break offering a chance for his side to fully reset, his side are looking forward to what will be a tough match against an Aston Villa side that currently sit fifth in the Barclays Women Super League table.
Under Carla Ward, Villa have improved and a lot of that can be put down to the goalscoring exploits of their summer signing, former Hammer Rachel Daly.
The forward has 16 goals in 18 appearances for the Villains, with four of those coming in their previous FA Cup fixture, an 11-0 win over AFC Fylde in the fourth round.
Add to that the arrivals of former Arsenal and England midfielder, Jordan Nobbs and Lucy Staniforth from Manchester United, Villa are aiming to compete on all fronts.
Konchesky's knows that Sunday's clash will be a tough one, but he's looking forward to seeing the team compete in such a prestigious competition once again.
It’s going to be tough; they’ve bought in some fantastic players in January.
We’re trying to make our ground a fortress and we’ve done that already getting a record fan attendance, we’ve taken a point off Arsenal, we want to build on that and hopefully that builds on from Sunday.
It’s going to be a tough game but if we can get a win there then momentum starts going again.
The FA Cup is a massive competition and it’s an honour to play and manage in.
It’s a competition that we as a Club really want to give a good go at – it’s such a special competition and we know the history that we’ve had in it.
We reached the final in the first professional season – whilst last year we reached the semi-final. We’re aiming for similar heights this time around. We have to take things game-by-game, but we’re ambitious and we want to really give it a go.
We have a really tough match against Villa in our previous meeting.
Getting one up on them is something big that you can take into the game,
I think the togetherness we showed that day, the togetherness of the whole squad, staff included will bring us closer together and I think that’s what we need.
We have to be together in every game which I think we are, but more than anything in cup games, we need to make sure we’re together from minute one to the end of the game.
We’re one big team, we’re one big family and that’s the way it should be and I think that’s why we’re doing so well at the moment.
You can watch Konchesky's Hammers in action on Sunday 26 February against Aston Villa, with tickets priced from just £10 for Adults and £4 for Juniors.
Click on the graphic below to purchase your tickets now!
