Paul Groves declared himself more than satisfied after West Ham United's weekend win against VfL Borussia Monchengladbach kicked off the Germany training camp in the right way.
The club's new senior coach was happy to see the team score two good goals, keep a clean sheet and deal with several substitutions in the 2-0 defeat of the Bundesliga side on Saturday. It was a victory that helped maintain morale, after the first two weeks of pre-season training had done much already to foster a positive spirit around the squad.
Talking to WHUTV, Groves said: "It went very well overall. There was a lot of changes and it has given the manager a couple of games now to have a look at people's strengths and what they can do - seeing them in different systems and positions. It has been very informative in terms of seeing what the players can do.
"There are a number of players that had longer term injuries so we have to be careful with those. We don't want to lose them. It is important at this stage of the season that we get fit players and we don't want to overload them. They don't have to be fit next week, we are looking at 14 August.
"People might have played 25-30 minutes and others have played longer, at maybe 60 minutes. They have all come through to date in good shape which is important.
"There is a very good atmosphere and some fantastic staff members at this club that work together incredibly well and hard. They probably don't get the recognition that they deserve and the players have been fantastic. It has been a pleasure to be part of that environment and long may that continue."
That upbeat assessment also extended to the fans, with Groves having been impressed in his first month at the club with the level of their backing. "We are looking forward to playing for the fans and the reputation with regard to the numbers [that travel] and the way they get behind the team.
"They have good knowledge of football. Credit to them for travelling out, it is fantastic. Hopefully we can give them a couple of good results this pre-season."
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