David Moyes is looking forward to what is set to be his final home game in charge of West Ham United, against Luton Town on Saturday afternoon.
The Club announced earlier this week that the manager will leave his role at the end of the 2023/24 campaign, following a successful four-and-a-half-year spell in charge that has yielded three successive European quarter-finals, a UEFA Europa Conference League trophy and two top-ten Premier League finishes in the last three years.
An emotional day in front of the Claret and Blue Army beckons at London Stadium, but Moyes’ priority remains the game in hand, with his team striving to respond strongly to what was a disappointing defeat at Chelsea last time out.
Luton travel to east London fighting for their top-flight status, having largely impressed throughout their first campaign in the Premier League but with three points currently the difference between them and 17th-placed Nottingham Forest with two games to go.
A mouth-watering match-up awaits in the capital then, and Moyes is itching for three points that would set up next week’s final-day trip to Manchester City in fine fashion.
A momentous occasion
I’m looking forward to the game, but the most important thing for me is the result, the performance and bouncing back after last week.
I’d hoped that we’d be pushing for Europe again at this stage of the season, but we’ve just dropped out of it. We’re still pushing for a strong finish in the Premier League though, and if we can finish in the top ten that would be excellent for us.
It’s our last home game of the season, and at such games the players normally like to give their thanks to the supporters. I’m no different to that.
Bidding farewell
I’m really comfortable with the situation, I’m comfortable with the Board, and everything’s fine.
I’ve been away from my family for a long time now, so we’ve had lots of discussions and I think it’s the right decision for both parties. We’ll go our separate ways after four-and-a-half years that have been brilliant.
It’s been a great journey. Coming in and stopping the Club getting relegated the second time was really difficult, but then things changed very quickly. We became a European team, and then a team that was expected to be in Europe, and I think there’s a stability there now.
The future
I’ve still got a massive hunger for football, but first and foremost I think I’m going to take a break. There was a really small break between the Europa Conference League final and the start of pre-season last summer, and again this season we’ve played a lot of games.
I strive to work as hard as I possibly can, and I’ve tried to do that at West Ham. There have been a lot of hours and a lot of effort, so I think I do need that break. I’m going to be working during the Euros [UEFA Euro 2024], for the BBC, talkSPORT and UEFA, which will be exciting.
I love football, and I want to stay involved in football. I’m one of a small group to have managed over 1,000 games, most of which have been in the Premier League, where lots of good managers come and go, so I’m proud of that and I think I can give something back to younger managers.
I’m keen on coach education, and maybe that’s something I’ll look at doing at some point down the line, but I’m not quite sure if I’m ready to give up my whistle and stopwatch just yet.
Luton test
Rob Edwards has done a brilliant job at Luton. To be a young manager, and navigate the Premier League with a team that’s been out of the division so long – and with the way they’ve come through the ranks over the last decade or so – is no mean feat.
He’s got his team in with a chance of staying up, but I’ve got to try and take that chance away from him this weekend. That’s the nature of the game – we can admire each other and be good colleagues and friends off the field, but we all want the result when it matters.
