James Collins is aiming to emulate his former West Ham United teammate Teddy Sheringham and play on until he is 40!
The Hammers centre-back may be 33, but he ended 2016/17 in superb form, inspiring Slaven Bilic’s side to a run of one defeat and four clean sheets in their final seven matches.
Having ended the season on 199 appearances in Claret and Blue, the veteran defender is looking forward to adding to that tally next term.
“I got back in the team towards the end of the season and it went well,” he confirmed. “We picked up some points and managed to get safe and I was pleased with my own form.
“I feel better now than I ever have, to be honest. I’m 33 and feel like I can play until… who knows? I played with Teddy Sheringham until he was 40!
“I am playing well at the minute, I feel fit, I look after myself and try and keep up with the young lads as much as I can.”
Collins also believes West Ham’s strong finish to last season will stand them in good stead when the Premier League kicks-off again in August.
With a full six-week pre-season to prepare for the new campaign and experienced Argentina defender Pablo Zabaleta already signed up for next season, the Wales international believes the Hammers can make their mark in 2017/18.
“I’ve been in the game a long time now and I know that if you can finish one season quickly, you normally start the next one well, and we finished with a win and on a decent little run,” the No19 observed.
I feel better now than I ever have, to be honest. I’m 33 and feel like I can play until… who knows? I played with Teddy Sheringham until he was 40!
James Collins
Another positive is that the Hammers will be fully settled into their London Stadium home, having played there 25 times in their maiden season on Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park.
The players and fans will also be able to draw on the memories of unforgettable wins over Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur last term, with Collins citing the atmosphere created by the Claret and Blue Army as playing a major role in both victories.
“I was speaking to Nobes [Mark Noble] about it after the Spurs game and that, as well as the Chelsea night in the EFL Cup there, it needed a night or two like that to create a bit of history at the new stadium,” Collins observed.
“Now people can look back and have some good memories, and I think they will start things off and you’ll see a different team here next season.
“If you look at our home games, the two best atmospheres were for Chelsea and Tottenham at home and we’ve beaten them both, so it just shows you how big a help the fans are and they were there for us all season. Hopefully the way we finished the season paid them back a bit.”