David Moyes urges West Ham to rise to the occasion for Conference League tie against Gent

West Ham United manager David Moyes has urged his side to bring their best when they face KAA Gent in the second leg of their Europa Conference League clash tomorrow.

The 59-year-old said he expects the Belgian side to provide a stern challenge when they visit the London Stadium. They drew the first leg 1-1 in Belgium.

A victory tomorrow will see the Hammers reach the semi-final of a European competition for the fifth time in their history.

It will be their second consecutive season reaching a semi-final under Moyes following their Europa League run last term. Eventual champions Eintracht Frankfurt knocked them out.

“Recently, we’ve not played as well as we’d like but I thought, in the Arsenal game, we played really, really well, and the players put in a good showing – let’s hope we can continue that,” Moyes said (via West Ham’s official website).

“Isn’t it incredible that West Ham United are the favourites to win the UEFA Europa Conference League?

“There are only three European competitions to be in, and for people to think we’re worthy of winning one of those, it means a lot.

“I believe we can threaten Gent. We’re at home and we’ll have a big crowd behind us.

“We’ve had some big European nights at London Stadium, like when we played Sevilla and Lyon, so hopefully we can rise to the occasion again and see ourselves through.”

Moyes added that Nayef Aguerd would be in the squad to face Gent. He suffered a foot injury in the first leg and missed the Arsenal game.

The West Ham manager reminded his side to be wary of Gent’s threat. The Belgian side dropped down from the Europa League and he is not expecting a blowout victory.

However, this is an opportunity West Ham must take.