Sam Allardyce has claimed Leeds United must look to take advantage of a potentially tired West Ham at the London Stadium on Sunday.
Allardyce was speaking in his pre-match press conference ahead of the game, where he challenged his side to ‘test them early on’ after their European exploits.
The Hammers progressed to the final of the Europa Conference League on Thursday evening as a stoppage time Pablo Fornals goal sealed a 3-1 aggregate victory over AZ Alkmaar.
With West Ham all but safe from relegation in the Premier League, celebrations went on long into the night in the Netherlands in what will be their first European final in 47 years.
Allardyce lays out Leeds challenge
With Leeds having had eight days between matches to prepare for Sunday, Allardyce has called on his side to pounce on any fatigue potentially in the West Ham side.
Leeds currently sit inside the Premier League’s bottom three and know that only three points will be enough on Sunday and Allardyce knows his side must look to start quickly.
He said: “I think we have to try and find out what we’re going to do against West Ham. We have to test them early by how we choose to play. Aware of West Ham, yes. It won’t matter unless the players play their best.
“Systems mean nothing unless players play their best. We have to test West Ham to see if there’s any legacy from Thursday night. We have to make sure we’re in a position to win or in a winning position in the last moments.”
Leeds really could not have asked for a better time to play West Ham than Sunday, particularly now that they also have a European final to look forward to.
If three points can’t be secured on Sunday there won’t be many supporters who believe Leeds deserve to stay up.