Pardew Attacks Europe on Two Fronts

Alan Pardew says he wants West Ham to qualify for Europe through the league and through the cup.

“The two routes into Europe are still open to us and there are not many teams who can say that,” said Pardew.

Victory against Boro in the FA Cup semi-final at Villa Park a week on Sunday will secure West Ham a place in next season’s UEFA Cup. However Pardew also wants West Ham to finish at least seventh in the league.

Pardew has set a target of four points from Saturday’s game against City and Monday’s trip to Boro. This could prove a tough ask for West Ham as they have looked pretty jaded of late. The City game should be a banker but Boro have been on good form lately. Pardew has said he wants the players to put, "the semi-final at the back of their mind. We don’t want it to cloud the fantastic opportunity we have of seventh place in the Premiership, which I do believe is European qualification.