Tomáš Souček is targeting success across four competitions with West Ham United after firing the Irons to a Carabao Cup third-round win against Lincoln City.
The Czech Republic international turned home the only goal of the game at LNER Stadium to put the Hammers into the last 16 of the competition, with a home tie against Arsenal now awaiting West Ham in late October.
Souček and his teammates have enjoyed a strong start to the Premier League season and claimed a win in their opening UEFA Europa League group stage match, against FK TSC, last week. With victory in the Carabao Cup third round secured, and the FA Cup starting in January, the midfielder wants the Hammers to battle on all four fronts.
“We are playing in four competitions this year and we want to go as far as possible in each of them,” the 28-year-old told West Ham TV. “We want to be successful.
“We put out a good squad against Lincoln and that shows how important we consider this competition. We don’t just have one small group of players, we have 20 players who are ready to play anywhere, anytime, which is the best thing for all of us."
The Imps far from made Wednesday’s clash an easy affair for the Irons. Hakeeb Adelakun saw a header expertly saved by Łukasz Fabiański, while Alex Mitchell's finish was ruled out for offside late in the first half.
The atmosphere at LNER Stadium made for an exciting evening of competitive football; an atmosphere Souček relished featuring in.
“We could see that Lincoln City are a good side and when you’re playing in the Carabao Cup, away from home, it’s not easy,” Souček continued. “You need to make sure you score the first goal in these games and we’re happy that we did that. But we also need to say it was a really hard game and Lincoln did very well.
“Honestly, I really like these challenges in the Carabao Cup. When we go to teams from the leagues lower than us, we get to see different atmospheres and how much their fans are up for it. And even their players too, who want to give their maximum against us. Even for us, it’s perfect because it is a great opportunity for all of us.
“It’s tough to play against teams like Lincoln because, unlike teams in the Premier League, it’s more difficult to know what they’re going to do. We had one or two days to prepare for this, because of our busy schedules, but I think we prepared well for this game. They were very good from their set-pieces and their throw-ins, but we were able to do well and stop them from those areas.”
The midfielder followed up on his goal last week at London Stadium in the UEFA Europa League with another finish from a corner against Lincoln City, his second of the campaign so far.
“It’s perfect to score these goals. I’m happy I can add another goal and it made it 1-0 to the team.
“It’s another goal from a set-piece too, even though James Ward-Prowse wasn’t here for this game! It’s great we have other possibilities from set-pieces and I’m just happy we’ve got through in the competition.”
A busy September schedule now continues as the Hammers look ahead to Saturday when a return to Premier League action sees Sheffield United visit London Stadium.
With Souček setting his aim on success across four competitions, all eyes in east London have fixed firmly on the next fixture.
He added: “The schedule never stops! We’re enjoying it though because we can play every three or four days in different competitions. It’s fantastic and now we will give our maximum to be ready for Sheffield United in the Premier League.
“We know, if we can win at home, we’ll be in a very good position in the table. For us now, the most important thing is to focus on Saturday.”
