Forward Niclas Füllkrug insists he and his West Ham United teammates are determined to produce a strong response to last weekend’s disappointment when they host Chelsea in an exciting London derby on Friday night.
The Germany international completed the full 90 minutes of the Hammers’ 3-0 defeat at Sunderland on the opening weekend of the fresh Premier League campaign, following an encouraging summer in which he scored in three successive pre-season clashes, against Everton, AFC Bournemouth and LOSC Lille.
While admitting things have to improve going forward, Füllkrug is confident a high-profile home clash against local rivals, in front of a passionate London Stadium crowd, is the perfect opportunity for West Ham to get back on track.
Chelsea go into the game hotly-tipped for success in 2025/26, as the reigning FIFA Club World Cup and UEFA Conference League champions, but Füllkrug believes the energy generated by the Claret and Blue faithful can power the team to the full share of the spoils under the lights.
“The opponent isn’t that important to me, to be honest” said Füllkrug. “For me, it’s more about it being a home game, which we want to win and where we want to show a reaction.
“We have to be critical with ourselves after the Sunderland game last week. Of course, it wasn’t easy, and it was a very loud and intense atmosphere, but we have to do better, and now we have to respond in the right way.
“It wasn’t easy for anyone at the Club, including the fans, and I think we’re going to need them on Friday. I think they can help us by generating a really good atmosphere and giving Chelsea problems to deal with.
“It’s certainly going to be a great occasion, and with the supporters’ help, I believe that as a team we can go and get the job done.”
Four victories from five pre-season outings over the summer yielded plenty of optimism about the team’s on-field development ahead of the new season, while Füllkrug and several other members of the squad have talked at length about how trips to Germany and the USA helped bring the group much closer together off the pitch.
Our No11 - who has been one of the standout stars of the last seven weeks, since the team first reported back to Rush Green - is clear that such good work hasn’t been undone by one poor result, and he is indeed looking forward to seeing their combined quality shine through.
Having himself been restricted to only 20 appearances during 2024/25, due to injury, Füllkrug is feeling the benefit of a full pre-season, and is looking to get off the mark in front of goal against Chelsea.
Füllkrug added: “The first game didn’t go how we wanted, but if you look at pre-season, the intensity and competition was high, and we’ve been trying to improve and push boundaries every day.
“We’re not happy with last week, but we have to keep a positive mindset and be confident in the work we’re doing, and that will help us to deal with situations like when we went behind at Sunderland.
“For me, I didn’t feel I got to my top level last season, and now I just want to play as much as I can. With game time, I will get chances and I’m always confident I can score goals. I will improve week by week, and I think we will as a team as well.”
