West Ham United manager David Moyes has labelled Everton a ‘hard nut to crack’ ahead of their encounter at London Stadium on Sunday.
The Hammers head into the weekend contest on the back of a three-match winless streak across all competitions following their shocking midweek defeat to Olympiacos.
Moyes’s heavily rotated starting line-up failed to match the Greek heavy hitters before falling to a 2-1 defeat, extending their increasingly concerning winless run.
West Ham had previously suffered a damning 4-1 defeat to Aston Villa in their last Premier League outing, which followed an entertaining 2-2 draw against Newcastle United.
Moyes expects a tough challenge from Everton, although he will be determined for his side to return to winning ways on home turf.
“What I would expect from Sean Dyche, from Everton – a hard nut to crack,” Moyes told Sky Sports in his pre-match press conference.
“They’ve probably played a little bit better away from home this season, so we’ll expect it to be a really tough game.
“I don’t see them getting turned over easy, I don’t see teams beating them easily, I don’t see that at all.
“I see a sort of resilient team, keeping at it. On their day, they’ve got players capable of scoring goals and as I said they’re a tough nut to crack.”
Everton also head into the weekend showdown on the back of a 2-0 defeat to Liverpool in the first Merseyside derby of the 2023/24 campaign.
The Toffees put up an admirable fight, but a late brace from Mohamed Salah condemned Dyche’s side to their sixth defeat of the season, with just three points separating them from the relegation zone.
They have won just one of their last three games (L2) and three of their previous seven (D1, L3) across all competitions.
Another defeat could spell trouble for the Toffees, but a return to winning ways will push West Ham toward the continental places, especially if other results go their way.
