Manuel Pellegrini has outlined his worries ahead of West Ham United’s trip to Newport County in the Carabao Cup second round on Tuesday.
The Chilean has urged his side to forget about Saturday’s 3-1 victory away at Watford, and fully set their sights on the trip to Wales, and go into the game as with a Premier League attitude.
Speaking to the Express before the game, Pellegrini reminded his side of their defeat to Wimbledon in the cup last season and admitted it could be a potential banana skin for his side.
“It is very worrying, this game,” Pellegrini said.
“We need to put Watford behind us and focus on the cup game. We know this is a team that eliminated Leicester and drew with Tottenham.”
“We got experience of this last season with Wimbledon. So we must put all of our minds into continuing in the Carabao Cup.”
The Hammers’ boss warned against the potential of complacency in the tie, with Newport currently sitting in the League Two play-offs after an unbeaten start to the season.
OPINION
For Pellegrini to come out and openly admit that this game is worrying for himself and his West Ham side, there must a slight feeling of pressure surrounding the club. Tuesday’s trip to Newport definitely has the potential to be a long night for the Hammers, with the Welsh club having bullied teams such as Leeds United, Leicester City, and Tottenham in cup competitions at Rodney Parade in the past couple of seasons. Football.London journalist Sam Inkersole did reveal on a live blog that the West Ham board and senior figures were desperate for a cup-run this season, with that extra expectation surely weighing on the shoulders of Pellegrini and his side. With changes expected, such as Albian Ajeti set to make his debut [Football.London], the Chilean must be careful not to disrupt his squad before the game, or face the humiliation of last years defeat to Wimbledon all over again.
