West Ham United skipper Mark Noble believes his side’s solid defensive line has given the rest of the team the platform to go and win games.
David Moyes’ Hammers have now kept three clean sheets in a row and just two goals have been conceded in their last four matches, an impressive record given the side’s opposition in recent weeks.
West Ham followed up a 1-0 win over Chelsea and a goalless draw with Arsenal with Saturday’s comfortable 3-0 victory over Stoke City at the Bet365 Stadium.
And Noble, who set the Hammers on their way in the Premier League fixture at the weekend, scoring a first half penalty, is confident the east Londoners will continue to improve given their superb defensive displays.
He said: “Our defence have been fantastic. The whole squad were fantastic [on Saturday], in particular the back five. They gave us the platform to go on and win the game.
“You look at Arnie [Marko Arnautovic] and Michail [Antonio] up front, they’ve run themselves into the ground and it starts there.
“They’ve both come off last couple of weeks, but we need that. We need that power and hungriness every week and they’re giving it at the minute. It’s been really good.
The whole squad were fantastic, in particular the back five. They gave us the platform to go on and win the game
Mark Noble
“I believed in the way we were defending to be fair, and I knew if we had enough chances we’d score. It took Marko quite a few! He hit the bar twice, but he got one and I was so happy for him.
“I honestly believed that we could have won it more, but are we happy with 3-0 at Stoke? Yes, I’m not going to get greedy!”
Arnautovic grabbed West Ham’s second after hitting the crossbar twice and going close on three other occasions, before Diafra Sakho was introduced and added a late third.
And Noble, although watching from the touchline at this point having been replaced due to injury in the first half, was delighted for his Senegalese teammate.
“I was really buzzing for Diaf. He’s sat and waited patiently, but he’s got his chance. Diaf loves scoring goals and to see him score, I’m so happy for him.
“I tweaked my hamstring during the Arsenal game and I hadn’t played for three weeks, coming into Chelsea and Arsenal. They were two massive results and a lot of ground was covered, so I came in Thursday with a sore hamstring.
“I thought I could get away with it today; but I got the goal, got that penalty and managed to get a standing ovation in the 30th minute!
“I was a nervous wreck in the second half. I’d rather be in a dark room and you can let me know the result!
“If we play like we have the last week [against Newcastle on Saturday], we’ll be fine. I’ll make sure the players don’t get complacent and I really believe that we can push up the table.”