David Moyes has heaped praise on a returning key player for his side following a professional performance in the 2-0 win over AEK Larnaca in the Europa Conference League.

West Ham were in need of a morale bossing display and result in the trip to Cyprus, following a poor result in the Premier League against Brighton last weekend – and Moyes’ side delivered in the hope that momentum can now be gained ahead of our match against Aston Villa this Sunday.

For the vast-majority of the match on Thursday, our Hammers looked comfortable throughout, producing some slick passing and movement which the home side struggled to compete with. Following the result, the manager gave special mention to the returning Kurt Zouma – highlighting him as a key component as to why the performance levels rose for the European encounter.

“There’s something about Kurt playing that just makes us look a little bit more real and proper,” admitted the West Ham manager. “Hopefully we can get him in the right condition over the next month or two.”

The boss also gave mention to the goalscorer of the night Michail Antonio, hoping that the performance and result for the Hammers number 9 will give him confidence in the important games West Ham have ahead in the coming weeks.

“I think it will do Mick’s confidence the world of good,” added the boss, as reported by Football London.

“Getting goals this season has not been easy for him. We need him. He’s such an important player for us. And we need goals at the club. We’ve brought in Danny, and there’s competition now. Let’s hope it pushes them all on to score more goals.”