Lucas Paqueta speaks out to stop West Ham rumblings in their tracks and give some much needed perspective.
Lucas Paqueta has spoken out to stop West Ham rumblings in their tracks and give some much needed perspective.
In many ways West Ham have defied expectations with their start to the new Premier League season.
Wins at home against Chelsea, away to Brighton and Luton and a draw at Bournemouth – which could and should have been a victory – have the club in and around the top six.
A win in their Europa League opener has also put West Ham in the box seat in their group.
But the excitement about just what this new look Hammers side might achieve has been tempered – ever so slightly – by harsh 3-1 defeats to Manchester City and Liverpool in the last two league games.
There is no shame in losing to either of those sides of course. But there is a feeling, particularly against Liverpool, that West Ham could have come away with a positive result.
The superb start to the season had silenced murmurings of discontent which lingered from last season over David Moyes’ team selection, style of play, approach and substitutions.
But that has just started to bubble back to the surface in the last week or so among some West Ham fans.
Some have been critical of the approach at Anfield, particularly in the second half, with supporters feeling Liverpool were there to be got at defensively.
Others are frustrated by Moyes’ drip-feeding of Mohammed Kudus into the side and shifting of Lucas Paqueta out to the wing to accommodate a midfield three of Tomas Soucek, James Ward-Prowse and Edson Alvarez.
So step forward our Brazilian magnifico to offer words of wisdom.
Because Paqueta has spoken out to stop West Ham rumblings in their tracks and give some much needed perspective.
Speaking to West Ham’s official website in a pretty rare interview, Paqueta says everyone connected with the club should be hugely encouraged by the way they have played in defeats to Man City and Liverpool.
And he believes there is plenty to be positive about for his rapidly evolving team.
“The loss is annoying though because we did have chances to win the game, just like against City,” Paqueta said about the defeat at Anfield
“We need to keep our confidence up, though. We’re playing better, our game’s evolving. We’re disappointed with a loss against Liverpool so that’s a sign of how we’ve come on.
“We were good in both games and we had chances to win. We didn’t win – that’s part of football but we’re showing improvements that we’re competing against these teams and having chances to beat them.
“Now it’s back to training hard day-by-day so we can come out on top in our next challenge…
“I think we’re all feeling good despite the disappointment of the loss… but as I mentioned earlier that’s a sign of how much we’re improving and we need to keep that faith.
“I think we’ve started the season well. We’ve had four really difficult opponents in Brighton, Chelsea, City and Liverpool and we’re sitting on 10 points.
“So I think it’s a good start and we will keep on working hard and keep the confidence high in the camp so we can keep on winning more points.”
Well said that man.
Some much needed perspective from our talisman. Given everything that is going on with him at the moment, it speaks volumes that he really is stepping up as a leader on and off the pitch.
The Hammers will surely feel confident of getting back to winning ways when Sheffield United come to town on Saturday.
