West Ham United assistant manager Paco Jémez believes the players are finally buying into Nuno Espirito Santo ideas.
COPE have an interview with the Spanish coach today, following the 1-1 draw with Manchester United.
The 55-year-old arrived at West Ham in the middle of January. Espirito Santo reportedly sent out out a plea to get him onboard for their relegation battle.
Jémez appears to have had a significant effect too. The Hammers’ points per match record has risen significantly 1.4 from 0.67, while they’re also scoring more goals, conceding less and have a significantly better win rate too.
Jémez can see plenty of positive signs, and believes the squad is now buying in to their ideas.
“We were in a very bad run, we were seven points behind, however, in the last few matches the team has shown signs of life,” he said.
“They’ve picked up the pace, they’ve believed in what they’re doing, tweaking a few things without making major changes.
“If we continue like this, I’m convinced that the team will move up the table and we won’t be the ones who get relegated.”
One of those players who are buying into things is Adama Traore. He was a January addition from Fulham, signing in a €2.3m deal.
He knows Nuno Espirito Santo well, after working with him at both Wolves earlier in his career.
Indeed, he has made 134 appearances under the Portuguese coach, comfortably the highest tally of his career. Marco Silva is second on 79 games for comparison.
The winger has become renowned more for his physique than football in recent years. He’s undeniably one of the more noticeable footballers in that regard.
Jémez is also something of a physical fitness nut and jokes he’s already given the winger a warning
“Adama would love to be in my shape,” he added.
“The other day he came up to me and said, ‘Hey, boss, how are you?’ and I told him, ‘Well, watch out for me.'”