- West Ham United play Newcastle today
- The Hammers are in the Premier League relegation zone
- Nuno Espirito Santo suggests St James’ Park atmosphere could play a part in Sunday’s clash
West Ham United’s head coach, Nuno Espírito Santo, emphasised the importance of his team’s performance in the atmosphere at St James’ Park today.
The Hammers travel to Tyneside knowing that anything short of a victory over Newcastle United will leave the club’s Premier League survival chances dangling by a thread.
Pressure is also rising on the hosts after a lacklustre season, and Nuno was asked if West Ham may gain if discontent among the home fans grows throughout the game.
West Ham can impact potential St James’ Park boos, says Nuno
The Portuguese boss made it clear that his players can only influence the atmosphere in the stadium if they perform well on the pitch.
“If we are able to perform well, that [home crowd booing] can happen. But we cannot do anything unless we perform well. It’s about us and our task,” said Nuno in his pre-match press conference ahead of the Newcastle clash.
“Every game is a new game. What I believe is that we keep our approach. The value of points are the same in the first round to the last round. These two rounds are going to be the decider.”
West Ham are in the relegation zone coming into the season’s penultimate weekend, but Tottenham Hotspur’s slip-up earlier in the week has provided the Irons with a significant opportunity to put pressure on their relegation rivals.
The Hammers have shown signs of progress in recent weeks, despite their league position, nearly losing to title-chasing Arsenal last weekend after a contentious late VAR call ruled out Callum Wilson’s equaliser.
A win on Tyneside would briefly lift Nuno’s team out of the bottom three until Spurs face Chelsea on Tuesday night.
