West Ham right back Vladimir Coufal has said he is excited and looking forward to playing for the Czech Republic in this summer’s European Championships.
In the 2023/24 season, Coufal played 47 times for West Ham as the club finished ninth place in the Premier League and reached the quarter finals of the Europa League and the EFL Cup. The 31 year old has been rewarded for a successful campaign for the Hammers with a call up to Ivan Hasek’s Czech Republic squad for Euro 2024.
Coufal currently has 42 caps for the Czech Republic to his name and will be joined at the Euros by West Ham teammate Tomas Soucek who will be wearing the armband for his nation in Germany.
Discussing his call up and the tournament itself with the club’s Official Website, Coufal said: “It’s the second biggest tournament in international football, so I am really proud to be a part of the squad and be called up for the Euros, and hopefully we will have a successful tournament and our country will be proud of us. We have a new manager, so hopefully he will also be successful with us.”
The Hammers fullback went on to say: “Hopefully I will perform to the same level for the national team that I have in the Premier League. I would like some more assists because this year was quite good for me in terms of performances. I just need to keep going and we will see what will happen this summer with the national team.”
Coufal is relishing the prospect of representing his nation on the international stage with his West Ham teammate Tomas Soucek as well as being part of a new and youthful squad under manager Ivan Hasek: “Tomas is the captain for Czech Republic and I am very proud to be part of his side as he is my brother here (at West Ham) and it is the same when we represent our national team.”
The 31 year old went on to add: “Our squad is quite talented, but we have a lot of young players, so we will see how they deal with the pressure of the Euros. But I trust them and I believe in them, so they have to experience games like this and they will continue to grow.”
