Vladimír Coufal is hoping he and his teammates can defy the odds and mark David Moyes’ West Ham United farewell with victory at title-chasing Manchester City on Sunday.
The Irons travel to the North West for the final day of the 2023/24 season with their ninth-place finish already confirmed, while their opponents hunt three points that would earn them a fourth successive Premier League title.
A winless run at Etihad Stadium stretching back to September 2015 demonstrates the task in hand for the Claret and Blue Army, but a 3-1 home win over Luton Town last time out has restored a high level of confidence among the squad according to our No5.
Coufal, who was crowned the Club’s Players’ Project Award winner for his outstanding contribution to the local community, last weekend, said: “It’s probably one of the toughest places to go, and our record there is poor, but that streak has to finish at some point, so why not on Sunday?
“I’m really excited to get out there. There’s going to be a really good atmosphere because they’re going for a fourth title in a row, but it’s our job to go there and get a result that might stop them doing that.
“I know lots of Arsenal fans will be cheering us on, but for us we want to give the manager a positive send-off. We all know it’s going to be hard, but after doing it at home against Luton we hope we can do it away as well.”
The game against Pep Guardiola’s men will indeed bring the curtain down on Moyes’ four-and-a-half-year second spell in charge, in what will be his 261st match in the Hammers dugout.
Coufal was signed by the Scotsman in October 2020, and having since tallied over 150 appearances for the Club and won a UEFA Europa Conference League trophy under his tutelage, he is clear about the impact he has had on his career.
“I’m so grateful to him because he brought me in and gave me an opportunity to play in the Premier League,” Coufal said. “I was an unknown player at the start and nobody trusted me, but he did.
“It was a big change for me, and I had a lot of meetings with him and his coaching staff and managed to improve massively from a defensive perspective.
“I’ve always given him my best because I never want to disappoint him, and although it’s sad he’s not going to be here next year I am happy that together we have made so many amazing memories.”
Mixed results in the second half of the campaign mean West Ham will not be playing in Europe for the first time since 2020/21 next season, but with a third top-nine finish in four years secured, together with a recent run to the UEFA Europa League quarter-finals, Coufal insists the future’s bright at London Stadium.
He added: “Games like Newcastle away in March standout, because things might have been different if we’d come away with different results on days like that.
“But we have to remember what we have achieved. When I signed for West Ham I wanted to play in Europe and I thought we might miss it, but we have been there for three years in a row and done well.
“I’m looking forward to what’s ahead. I love West Ham, the people and the fans, and my family have got really used to London. We’ll focus on Manchester City now, and then see what lies ahead.”
