MX23RW : Saturday, July 6 14:27:32| >> :120:6217:6217:

Sam Allardyce praises "excellent" Hammers

Allardyce praises
© PA Photos
West Ham manager Sam Allardyce praises his side after they beat Cardiff 2-0 in the first leg of their Championship playoff semi-final this evening.

West Ham United manager Sam Allardyce has heaped praise upon his players following their 2-0 win against Cardiff in the first leg of their Championship playoff semi-final.

Two goals from Jack Collison gave the Hammers a comfortable lead to take into the second leg at Upton Park next week, and Allardyce believes that the win was fully deserved.

"We were excellent, we asked the lads to control their emotions on a big night like this, not to cause a problem for ourselves and I thought they handled the pressure excellently and played very well indeed," he told Sky Sports News.

"Tactically we did everything right and nullified Cardiff to minimal chances on their own ground and getting forward was outstanding and chances were created, scored and a lot missed.

"It has been a great night for us and it is only 90 minutes of a two-legged affair and anything could still happen, the onus is on us to see it through and there is no pressure on Cardiff and mentally we have to be right for it."

The winners of this semi-final will face either Birmingham City or Blackpool in the playoff final at Wembley on May 19.

ID:26106: cacheID:26106:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:restore:2115:
Restore Data
Share this article now:
Sam Allardyce
Read Next:
Cardiff 0-2 West Ham
>
rhs 2.0
Euro 2024 fixtures header
Saturday, July 6
 
5pm
 
8pm
Tuesday, July 9
 
8pm
Semi-Finals
Spain
vs.
France
Wednesday, July 10
Sunday, July 14
Tables header RHS

Group A

TeamPWDLPTS
Q Germany Germany32107
Q Switzerland Switzerland31205
3 Hungary Hungary31023
4 Scotland flag Scotland30121

Group B

TeamPWDLPTS
Q Spain Spain33009
Q Italy Italy31114
3 Croatia Croatia30212
4 Albania national flag Albania30121

Group C

TeamPWDLPTS
Q England flag England31205
Q Denmark Denmark30303
Q Slovenia Slovenia30303
4 Serbia Serbia30212

Group D

TeamPWDLPTS
Q Austria Austria32016
Q France France31205
Q Netherlands Netherlands31114
4 Poland Poland30121

Group E

TeamPWDLPTS
Q Romania Romania31114
Q Belgium Belgium31114
Q Slovakia Slovakia31114
4 Ukraine Ukraine31114

Group F

TeamPWDLPTS
Q Portugal Portugal32016
Q Turkey Turkey32016
Q Georgia Georgia31114
4 Czech Republic Czech Republic30121


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!