David Moyes says West Ham United need to go to Manchester City on Sunday with a plan to limit the hosts’ considerable attacking threat if they are to give themselves a chance of taking a positive result back to London.
The Hammers travel to Etihad Stadium with Pep Guardiola’s league leaders in supreme form, with the Manchester club having won 12 consecutive Premier League games.
Their efforts to extend that were nearly frustrated by stubborn Huddersfield and Southampton sides in the last week, with City requiring late winners to see off their efforts in both matches, and Moyes says his team should believe they can upset the odds.
He explained “We’ve got to have a plan to go there and get something from the game. We’ve got to find a way of breaking up Manchester City’s good play when we can and find a way of hurting them – trying to exploit any weaknesses we can.
“I don’t think there’ll be a team who plays Manchester City who doesn’t have to defend for long periods. Huddersfield did a brilliant job and Southampton did a good job of it too.
“We have to go there and make it as hard as we can and see if we can nick something.
We’ve got to find a way of breaking up Manchester City’s good play when we can and find a way of hurting them – trying to exploit any weaknesses we can
David Moyes
“Over the years I’ve faced some really good club sides – at Manchester United we played Bayern Munich in the quarter finals of the Champions League and Pep was the manager of Bayern at the time – that was probably my first coming together with Pep at that level.
“We drew 1-1 at Old Trafford and went 1-0 up there before losing 3-1. I would say Bayern Munich were a really good side then, and City under Pep are close to that Bayern.
“He’s got a great attacking team because he’s bought good defenders who can allow the attacking players to attack.”