Source: Team_Talk
Stech: No clamour for glamour
Marek Stech is hoping West Ham avoid a glamour tie in the Carling Cup quarter-finals.[LNB] A match against one of the Premier League top four would be the biggest of Stech's fledgling career but he would much rather the Hammers continued the cup run that may yet rescue their season.[LNB]The 20-year-old Czech has made just six senior appearances in English football since joining West Ham four years ago but has been an ever-present in the League Cup this season.[LNB]That included last night's extra-time fourth-round win over Stoke, which earned West Ham their place in Saturday's last-eight draw.[LNB]"It's great to be in the next round and I'm looking forward to it," Stech told WHUTV.[LNB]"I wish we'd get Wigan or West Brom. Obviously, Man U and Arsenal are still in, so we will see if we have to deal with them.[LNB]"That's another game next month, so we'll see what's going to happen."[LNB]The Hammers' miserable season looked set to continue last night when Stoke led 1-0 at Upton Park with six minutes remaining.[LNB]But Scott Parker sent the game into extra-time before goals from Manuel da Costa and Victor Obinna sealed a 3-1 win.[LNB]"It was brilliant. I enjoyed it so much," said Stech, who maintained his 100% record in a West Ham jersey.[LNB]"The lads did well and we all worked hard.[LNB]"We were 1-0 down after seven minutes and were a little bit down after that, but we pushed ourselves and we passed the ball well.[LNB]"It was brilliant because we worked as a team and that's what we needed to do.[LNB]"We needed to improve and we did that. We passed the ball quickly and made lots of chances and finally we won in extra-time."[LNB]Stech revealed how manager Avram Grant's teamtalk after full-time inspired the home side to complete their comeback.[LNB]"He was just saying, 'Keep focused', because always when you get to extra-time you have to focus and concentrate," Stech said.[LNB]"'You never know what can happen, so if you keep your heads up and pass the ball well, you can do well'.[LNB]"That's what we did and we won the game."[LNB]
