Konstantinos Mavropanos has warned Liverpool that West Ham United will be ready for Sunday’s meeting at Anfield despite the quick turnaround after playing in Europe.
The Hammers opened their Europa League campaign this Thursday night with a 3-1 win over TSC Backa Topola. David Moyes also handed Mavropanos his debut for West Ham at London Stadium. He joined the claret-and-blue side from VfB Stuttgart in August in a £20m transfer.
Thursday night also saw Liverpool kick off their Europa League campaign with a 3-1 win over LASK. Goals by Darwin Nunez, Luis Diaz and Mohamed Salah saw the Reds win from a goal behind. Similarly, the Irons fell 1-0 behind before mounting a second-half comeback to win.
Mavropanos is already looking ahead to visiting Liverpool
Mavropanos is now looking forward to marking his Premier League return when West Ham visit Liverpool on Sunday. The 25-year-old featured seven times in the top-flight whilst with Arsenal from 2018 to 2019. He only enjoyed a total of eight appearances with the Gunners.
Moyes opted against adding to Mavropanos’ tally of Premier League games when West Ham lost to Manchester City last Saturday. He only named the Greece international as an unused substitute against the defending champions. Nayef Aguerd and Kurt Zouma started instead.
What has the West Ham defender said about Sunday’s game?
Rotation in Europe brought Mavropanos’ debut for West Ham as he featured beside Angelo Ogbonna on Thursday. He adored the chance that Moyes offered. But Mavropanos’ mind is already on Sunday and meeting Liverpool in what the West Ham star considers a ‘big game’.
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“It’s a great feeling to be here,” Mavropanos has told the West Ham website. “I have been looking forward to my debut and I’m glad to get it. I’m really happy to be here.
“Sunday is another big game. We’re already focusing on that now. We only have a couple of days to get ready but we’ll be ready to play Liverpool, for sure.”
Mavropanos got his Premier League debut with Arsenal at Manchester United in April 2018. He also enjoyed a brief appearance at Manchester City in February 2019. But he could never cement a main role at Emirates Stadium under Arsene Wenger, Unai Emery or Mikel Arteta.