West Ham winger Jarrod Bowen insists the club must focus on the new season and not look back on their fine 2020/21 Premier League campaign.
The Hammers get under way with a trip to Newcastle on Sunday as they look to build on a season which saw them secure Europa League qualification with a sixth-place finish, just two points off the top four.
Having battled against relegation in previous years it was a surprisingly successful year for David Moyes and his players.
But, on the eve of their first game, Bowen wants all eyes to be on achieving something similar this season rather than dwelling on the recent past.
“What happened last season is done now,” he told West Ham’s official website.
“All our focus is on the new season. I feel like we will put in a good performance.
“Obviously, it’s the first game of the season and we want to get off on the right foot, but with what we did last season, we want to carry that form into the start of the season.
“It was obviously an unbelievable season for us to get 65 points and European football here.
“There was even talk at one stage about getting into the Champions League, which is a remarkable achievement for us coming from avoiding relegation the previous year.
“The Champions League wasn’t meant to be, but we still got Europa League, so it’s going to be good for me personally – something I have never experienced before.
“It’ll be really good to play in that and hopefully have a good run in it.”
While not wanting to look back, Bowen now wants West Ham to use last season as a yardstick for future targets.
“I think we want to build on what we did last year and be consistent with what we do,” he added.
“We don’t want to be a team that one season finishes in the Europa League places and another season finishes mid-table.
“We want to be consistently challenging for European football every season.
“We know that we can do it. Coming off last season, we know that we can achieve European football, so I think that’s got to be got to be the aim and the mindset for all of us.”
