‘We could have had SEVEN’: West Ham captain Declan Rice insists they should have beat struggling Leeds by more goals… as boss David Moyes hails victory as a momentum builder ahead of their Europa Conference League final
Declan Rice has said West Ham will take the confidence from their 3-1 win against Leeds on Sunday into the Europa Conference League final.
Hammers captain Rice played the full game and scored the equalizing goal as his side turned a 1–0 deficit to win at the London Stadium.
The 24-year-old’s goal was his fourth league goal of the season – the best of his career – and ended Rodrigo Moreno’s opener with Jarrod Bowen and Manuel Lanzini scoring late for the hosts.
And Rice told Sky Sports after the match that the victory and the support from the fans will help them gain momentum in their European final against Fiorentina in Prague, Czech Republic on June 7.
He said: “If you look back on Thursday night, the first 15-20 (minutes) took its toll on us and we probably weren’t 100 per cent, but as the game went on we completely dominated and could have had six in the end. or seven, just wasteful with opportunities.
West Ham’s Declan Rice, 24, says his side will draw confidence from their 3-1 win against Leeds
David Moyes’ Hammers came from behind on Sunday to beat Sam Allardyce’s side
Rice will lead the East London side in the Europa Conference League final in Prague on June 7
“I had a weird feeling that I was going to score. I think this is my best goalscoring season. I made a lot of runs in the box today and I just need to keep adding that to my game.
“If you go to the last game next week and also the final of the Europa Conference League, we need to build momentum. We have the fans behind us and that gives us confidence.”
And Hammers boss David Moyes, speaking to the media after the match, praised the mode of victory given their fatigue after the exhausting Europa Conference League second leg victory against AZ Alkmaar.
He added: “Great win. I was a little wary after Thursday night’s game and how much we put into the game. We knelt down, we were a bit sloppy for the first 15 minutes, but then we got control.
“I thought maybe getting a goal would bring us a little more life. We did a lot of good things, we probably could have scored more goals. We want to keep making progress and I thought we played well today, especially in the second half. We missed some chances, but I’d rather miss them than not make them at all.
“We are not shouting about the position we finish in the table, but we are very happy to be in a European final. We hope we can go ahead and win it. The players have done an enormous amount of work all season.’
West Ham are now mathematically safe from relegation after a disappointing season and will travel to Leicester on Sunday for the final game of the season.
Leeds, meanwhile, are in 18th place and are in serious danger of going down after losing another lead.