West Ham boosted by return of forward Niclas Füllkrug in remaining games of Premier League campaign

National World - LocalTV

West Ham’s attacking struggles have been a major challenge this season, but the return of Niclas Füllkrug has sparked new hope in their bid for a strong finish. I spoke to James Jones about Füllkrug’s impact and what it could mean for West Ham’s attacking prospects as they look to improve their form.

Transcript

00:00Now West Ham's attacking struggles have been a major challenge this season

00:07but the return of Niklas Falkrug have sparked new hope in their bid for a stronger finish.

00:13The German strikers physical presence and goal scoring pedigree could be the key

00:18to unlocking a more potent attacking force for the Hammers.

00:22With Falkrug back in the fold West Ham will be looking to solve their goal scoring issues

00:27and push towards the top half of the table.

00:30His ability to link play and finish chances could make all the difference in the final stretch.

00:35I spoke to James Jones about Falkrug's impact

00:38and what it could mean for West Ham's attacking prospects as they look to improve their form.

00:45So James, just looking at Niklas Falkrug, obviously back in the fold,

00:50he's had a pretty torrid start to his West Ham career,

00:53obviously being injured a couple of times and then coming back.

00:56In terms of this run-in for West Ham, it does offer a big boost having him in the side.

01:01He can really show that hold-up play a lot better than a few of the other players up front for West Ham.

01:08He's a very important focal point.

01:11What does his return bring in terms of confidence going forward?

01:14Does it maybe lighten up this run-in that we've mentioned is a bit of dead rubber at this stage?

01:20But a real positive could see him getting a few goals in a West Ham shirt

01:25and going into the summer and having a few more goals under his belt.

01:30I actually think Falkrug's return from injury could be the boost that we've needed for some time.

01:36I know there are a lot of fans and even neutrals that have almost written him off

01:40as a bit of a flop at West Ham, given his injury record.

01:42And he's been very, very unlucky with that.

01:46But we saw in the 15 minutes he had in Graham Potter's first game,

01:50before he limped off injured, just how effective he can be.

01:53He played such an important role in that goal against Aston Villa in the FA Cup third round.

01:58The hold-up play, laying it off to Somerville,

02:01and then obviously he'd be scored for the end of that move.

02:04And he was just, he was a nuisance.

02:06And you could see that the intelligence in his play

02:08is exactly the type of intelligence that Graham Potter likes in a front man.

02:13So it was a huge blow to lose him just 15 minutes into Graham Potter's time at the club.

02:18And so I felt that when he does come back, if he can come back fully fit

02:21and be, you know, as the same player,

02:25then we've got, you know, that could solve a lot of our problems going forward.

02:30But we discussed the issues in the final third.

02:33And we saw in the second half, when he came off the bench, came on at half-time,

02:36immediately we looked a lot more dangerous.

02:39Yes, we didn't score, but we looked a lot more dangerous going forward.

02:43He hit the bar as well in that second half.

02:45So I think his return is going to be a huge thing for West Ham

02:51in the final eight games of the season.

02:52It's whether we can get him to a fitness level where he can start games.

02:57But I think that would be the long-term plan for Graham Potter.

03:01But, yeah, I mean, despite being written off and despite the injuries that he's had,

03:08you can't deny that the talent he's got and that, you know,

03:11his career has been fantastic, particularly over the last five years.

03:14You know, he started a Champions League final for Borussia Dortmund last season,

03:18scored goals for Germany in the Euros.

03:20So this isn't a player that we've just plucked off out of thin air

03:24and, you know, we're hoping he might come good.

03:26You know, he's a seasoned striker that's proven that he can score goals at the very highest level.

03:32He just needs a little bit of luck with his fitness and he needs a run of games.

03:37And I don't think he's really had the opportunity to have that.

03:39But he's already shown signs, especially under Graham Potter,

03:42that he can be an important member of this football team.

03:46And, yeah, if we can keep him fit, then I think we might see him on the score sheet

03:50quite a few times between now and the end of the season.

03:52But I'd like to see us win, you know, get at least two or three more wins under our belt this year.

03:59And I think the key thing is just to ensure that we're not disgracing ourselves.

04:04We don't fall back into old habits.

04:05I think we continue to have the defence nice and tight.

04:09And if we can score a few goals and improve that end of the pitch,

04:12then I think we can say that's a bit of progress heading into the summer

04:15where there will be a lot of change, like we've said.

04:16So, yeah, it's going to be an interesting final eight games

04:20because there's nothing to play for other than the players playing for their future at the club.

04:27So, yeah, it doesn't really...

04:29It's difficult to predict.

04:31But I'd like to think we'll end relatively comfortably.

04:36I think it's not going to be a struggle to get results.

04:39But at the same time, it's not going to be easy.

Category

Transcript

Recommended