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‘Let’s see who’s ready for the fight’: David Moyes throws down the gauntlet to his West Ham players after London derby defeat against Tottenham leaves them in the relegation zone, but Scot is keen for the Hammers ‘build’ moments of encouragement
- West Ham lost 2-0 to Spurs in an uninspiring performance on Sunday night
- The result leaves Moyes’ men in the relegation zone after a terrible run of form
- The Hammers manager has challenged his players to see who is ‘ready for the fight’
David Moyes said he will look his West Ham players in the eye to see who is ready for the fight after finishing the weekend in the bottom three of the Premier League.
The loss to Tottenham was deflating and left the 59-year-old under increasing pressure before facing Nottingham Forest at London Stadium on Saturday.
An angry Moyes said afterwards that he awaits a reaction from his team ahead of a big week of work for West Ham.
“I know I’ll be looking at the color of the players’ eyes next week,” Moyes said. I can imagine what the color of mine will be. The players have been challenged now. Let’s see who’s up for the fight.
On Forest being the next visitors to the London Stadium, Moyes added: ‘Very big. Every game is great. Even today it was big.
David Moyes has challenged his West Ham stars after defeat to Spurs extended his losing streak
The Hammers find themselves in the relegation zone, one point behind Bournemouth in 17th place.
For Cristian Stellini there are three victories in three games at the helm of Tottenham on a temporary basis. However, he later revealed that Antonio Conte had a say in everything from his home in Italy, including substitutions for him.
Son Heung-min responded to his slump by coming on and confirming victory, as he did the last time Conte benched him against Leicester in September.
“We knew Sonny’s answer would be perfect because Sonny is a perfect guy,” Stellini said. ‘I’m very happy to see this kind of performance.
“It was an important match, an important moment. With a win we can get back to fourth place. Now it’s important to be consistent in these kinds of performances.’
Son added: ‘Nobody wants to sit on the bench, but it’s a decision you have to accept. The decision is always made by the manager and I have to accept it. I had the chance and I was happy to score.