Graham Potter insists West Ham United will fight for every point on offer in their remaining eight Premier League games this season, as they look to sign off for the summer in style.
The Hammers are looking to bounce back from Tuesday night’s narrow 1-0 defeat at Wolverhampton Wanderers when they host AFC Bournemouth on Saturday afternoon - their first match on home soil in close to four weeks.
Such a disappointing result marked a second defeat in three, but Potter believes his side have improved markedly in different areas since his appointment in January, and is confident they can soon rediscover the sort of form that yielded back-to-back wins over Arsenal and Leicester City in February.
With just three goals conceded in the last five games, the Hammers have been more solid defensively of late, and minutes for the likes of Evan Ferguson, Niclas Füllkrug and Luis Guilherme at Molineux has given the Head Coach food for thought in attack, too.
Sat 16th in the top-flight table with eight games to go, the Irons could go level on points with 13th-placed Manchester United should results go their way this weekend, and Potter is clear that he and his players are looking for the full share of the spoils against the travelling Cherries.
Andoni Iraola’s troops head into the east London match-up on the lookout for European qualification, despite a tricky five-game winless league run that has seen them defeated four times, including at home to relegation-threatened Ipswich Town on Wednesday.
Indeed, while they sit just five points behind sixth-placed Chelsea, at the time of writing, Bournemouth will be looking to kickstart their run-in with a return to winning ways, to boost their continental hopes.
An enticing encounter lies in store at London Stadium, then, and with anticipation for kick-off continuing to build, Potter sat down with the gathered press at Rush Green training ground to discuss ongoing work behind-the-scenes, individual members of his squad, and the upcoming opposition.
Wolves reflections
We were disappointed on Tuesday, because we always want to win. We always have to put things in perspective, as best we can.
We weren’t happy with the first half, particularly the second half of that first half. After they scored the goal I thought we suffered too much. We actually started the game OK.
We had a chance, that looked like an easy chance for Fergie (Evan Ferguson), but actually when you look at it, it’s a bit more difficult. It came across to him very quickly, through bodies, and he had to adjust his feet, which isn’t easy.
Nevertheless, over the course of the first half we weren’t happy with how we played. But in the second we showed a good reaction, and actually over the course of the game - in terms of chances, shots and all that stuff - it was relatively even.
Fixing the fine margins
I think we’re just on the back end of the margins at the moment. We were minutes away from winning at Everton, which isn’t easy, and we had a tight game against Newcastle, that finished 1-0 because of a dubious goal from our perspective.
That’s where we are, and that just shows how this league can be. Bournemouth are on a bit of tough run themselves, so we know how competitive and ruthless this league is, and we have to keep working to try and improve.
Ferguson up for the fight
Goals obviously help a striker, and he got one for his country during the international break. I’ve said it many times, but you have to remember where Evan has come from, in terms of being out for a long time with injuries. He’s a young player, who’s building up his minutes.
I just felt it was the right thing to give [Niclas] Füllkrug some minutes at half-time against Wolves, to try and affect things in a different way, but Fergie will come back. He’s a strong character and he’s always ready to fight and help the team.
He always wants to do his best, and when you’ve got that kind of attitude, you’ve got a chance.
Luis Guilherme learning every day
It (substituting him at half-time against Wolves) wasn’t anything to do with Luis necessarily, and he was feeling his calf muscles as well.
Tactically, there were a few things we needed to adjust. We used some extra midfield players, but Luis is a player who will benefit from his experience on Tuesday night.
He’ll get stronger and stronger, and he’s an asset to this Club. He’s a fantastic lad, who tries his best every day and wants to be out there helping his team. His time will come again.
Füllkrug fit and ready to fire
We’ve been missing him, as well as some of the other attackers such as [Crysencio] Summerville and [Michail] Antonio, who are big players for us.
I think you can see what he brings to the team. He’s unique, and a big, physical player, but he’s also intelligent, good around the box, and he has a good touch and technique.
From our perspective, we just have to keep working with him, and keep getting him fitter and fitter. You can’t replicate Premier League minutes, but he’s worked hard in training and he’s prepared to play and take it step by step.
We’ll see how he recovers and then see how much he can do at the weekend.
Paquetá performing well
He’s been really, really good. I had a good chat with him a week or so ago, and we talked generally about training and his game. He’s been really good since then, and has shown a fantastic attitude.
He just loves playing football, and loves playing for West Ham. He wants to fight for the team and do his best, which is all I can ask of him.
Fighting for every point
We have the responsibility of trying to win every game - that’s our job, and what we have to do. I say it every week, but every match is important for us.
This is the Premier League, and we’re representing a huge Club with unbelievable supporters, so we have to approach every game as if it’s the [UEFA] Champions League final.
We have to try and get into that mindset. It’s important for us to finish off the season as strongly as we can, and that’s what we’ll try to do, starting on Saturday.
Three months into the job
I can understand the waiting for the lift-off, so to speak, but you have to understand the context we’ve been working in.
When we started, the team had some issues defensively, in terms of conceding too many goals. We’ve fixed that, and we’ve certainly made some steps in terms of how the team acts and behaves.
I think you can see that over the last few games we’ve always been competitive. A lot of the previous games were one-sided, or high-scoring, but we’ve been competitive in all the games.
When you’re changing things, and you’re changing the culture and the environment, it isn’t so obvious that the results go up as directly as you’d like. At the same time, we know we have to improve results, and that’s what we’re looking to do.
Ready for Bournemouth battle
They’re a well-organised team, who are clear about what they do in and out of possession. They attack with clarity, and defend with clarity. Their coach has done a really good job, and it’s a club that’s aligned and on the same page, moving forwards.
The run they’ve been on just shows how tough this league is. A few weeks ago they were getting some really strong results, and the last few weeks have shown how ruthless it is.
Things can happen over a season, but over the course of the season, and Andoni Iraola’s time in charge, they’ve improved, and got stronger and stronger. We expect a tough game.
