UEFA will let Hammers off hook, claims Moyes

DAVID MOYES is confident his West Ham players will not be punished for jumping into the stands to protect their families on Thursday night.

AZ Alkmaar are sure to be charged following the disgraceful scenes in the aftermath of West Ham’s 1-0 victory, which confirmed they would be playing in the Europa Conference League final on June 7.

Captain Declan Rice and team-mates Said Benrahma, Flynn Downes and Michail Antonio were the players involved and it remains to be seen whether Europe’s governing body will seek to charge them with inappropriate behaviour. West Ham are sure to fight that should it happen, given that the players genuinely feared their friends and families were in danger from Dutch ‘ultras’. Manager Moyes indicated he believed it wouldn’t get that far. ‘I can’t see any problem, to be honest,’ he said. ‘I work with UEFA on the technical stuff and I don’t think we’ll have any questions asked about that, that’s my opinion.’ West Ham’s Premier League campaign has mostly been a struggle to avoid relegation but the 3-1 victory over Leeds in their final home fixture of the season moved them up to 14th place. Many supporters had been calling for Moyes to be sacked earlier in the season but reaching the Hammers’ first European final in 47 years has placated critics and plenty of fans stayed behind afterwards to applaud the players on a lap of honour. ‘If you’re a West Ham supporter, there’s nothing you can do but applaud the team and how they’ve performed, because they’ve done remarkably,’ Moyes said. ‘I hope that we can really give them something to shout about in a week or so’s time.’