David Moyes has polished West Ham into becoming one of the Premier League’s top sides and has issued a hot warning to the current top four on warning that the Hammers are coming for them as his West Ham side are all geared up for a good scrap and all prepared to challenge the view that the top four is a closed proposition.
The popular opinion is that the two Manchester clubs, Chelsea and Liverpool are well primed to be the top four in the Premier League this season and are also set to fill the Champions League places because of their depth in quality. However, the Hammers finished just two points off the top four last season, and Moyes has re-shaped his Hammers side into one of the Premier League’s toughest teams to beat this season and is determined to make another push for it again this time around.
“I’d like to say that I’m going to challenge the top four,” he said. “I don’t want to sit back and think that they believe that we are not going to come at them.
“It makes me think: ‘Well, you’re challenging me a little bit here, you know?’
“All the bookies and anyone who knows about football will probably say that will be the case, the top four now will be the top four.
“But I take that as: ‘No, I want to try and be competitive against them.”
West Ham sit seventh, having won three of their six league games this season. They’ve drawn two and were unlucky not to grab a point in the other when Mark Noble missed a penalty against Man United.
Moyes added: “I’m going into those bigger games against the likes of Manchester United with a far different mindset.
“I’m going in saying: ‘I’m taking you on. Maybe we can’t get as much of the ball because you’re too good.
“But don’t think I’m going to get into those games thinking that we’re not going to try to take you on.’
“We lost Declan Rice in an England game with five games to go last season and it was absolutely huge for us. We still did well in those remaining games.
“As it was, Chelsea finished fourth – two points ahead of us – and they went on to win the Champions League themselves. So it gives you an idea of where we were competing.”
Moyes has pleaded West Ham fans to stay trouble-free in Europe to enable his dad and his family to follow the team.
Meanwhile, UEFA are looking into the circumstances behind the violence that marred the Hammers’ Europa League win over Rapid Vienna on Thursday night. West Ham host Genk on October 21 before traveling to face the Belgians and then Rapid in the return fixture next month.
Moyes said: “My dad, my wife and my family are all going to travel to all the away games to support West Ham.
“My Dad’s eighty-odd and I want him to feel that he can go and have a few beers with the supporters. I want him to feel he can get to games and feel there’s no problem.
“So wherever that is, we want to see the team win but we want to get a couple of days away and enjoy it.
“So we need everybody to be pulling in the right direction. We want to be the good West Ham.”
West Ham sit top of their Europa League group after two wins out of two and are favourites to progress to the next round.