Reek of dung in the league, smell like roses in the cups

David Moyes suggested last week that his West Ham team may have become a good cup team. This comment came after their surprising win over Arsenal, which propelled them into the quarter-finals of the Carabao Cup. Currently, they are at the top of their Europa League group and on track to play knockout football for the third consecutive season. A win tonight would put them on the road to their goal.

However, Moyes seemed to imply that although his team can achieve notable victories, they lack the consistency needed in the Premier League. This suspicion was confirmed by their recent run of three successive defeats and the fact that they have only won two EPL matches since August - against poor Sheffield United and Luton sides.

Although it is essential to acknowledge that improvements must be made in the Premier League, is being a stronger knockout team really such a bad thing? In the past, before qualifying for Europe became the main goal for most clubs, being a good cup team was the aspiration of many.

According to Moyes, the gap between the best teams and the rest was not as wide, which made claiming the occasional victory on the road to Wembley a more achievable feat.

"To be a manager, you want to be a really good league team. But we all know that trying to win the league or have success in the league is really difficult, so the cups play a huge part in keeping the supporters happy. Last year, I needed the cup games because the league form wasn't good enough. The cup games kept us bubbling along, and by the end, we had our best season for a long time."

Things have clearly changed since then, and the most successful English cup team of recent years is also the team that has won the league five times out of six. However, if any club in the top flight is in a position to challenge the idea that the Premier League must always come first, it may well be West Ham.

For the Irons, last season was dominated by the fear of relegation, yet it ended as the club's most memorable in decades. The UEFA Europa Conference League triumph ended a 43-year trophy drought and delivered David Moyes the first silverware of his career. Since the start of last season, the Hammers have won 24 games in cup competitions and only 15 in the League.

The Hammers had a 17-match unbeaten streak in European football, a record for an English club. However, two weeks ago, they suffered a defeat against Greek giants Olympiakos. If they win against the same opponent tonight, they will be on the verge of qualifying for the knockout stages. Defender Kurt Zouma did not participate in training on Wednesday and will be evaluated to determine if he can play in the match.

UEFA EUROPA LEAGUE

Group stage - matchday 4

Thursday

20:45: (4.50) Ajax (3.80) Brighton (1.85)

20:45: (3.60) LASK (3.60) St.Gilloise (2.15)

20:45: (7.00) Toulouse (4.50) Liverpool (1.45)

20:45: (1.75) Rennes (3.70) Panathinaikos (5.40)

20:45: (1.80) Servette (3.60) Sheriff Tiraspol (5.10)

20:45: (2.95) Slavia Praha (3.20) Roma (2.50)

20:45: (7.00) Qarabag (4.50) Leverkusen (1.45)

20:45: (4.40) Maccabi Haifa (3.50) Villareal (1.85)

23:00: (1.15) Freiburg (8.00) TSC Backa Topola (16.0)

23:00: (1.67) West Ham (3.80) Olympiakos (5.30)

23:00: (2.55) AEK (3.50) Olympique Marseille (2.85)

23:00: (1.32) Betis (5.30) Aris Limmasol (9.50)

23:00: (2.10) Rangers (3.50) Sparta Praha (3.80)

23:00: (1.27) Atalanta (5.90) Sturm (10.5)

23:00: (1.25) Sporting (6.00) Rakow (11.0)

23:00: (2.75) Hacken (3.45) Molde (2.50)

***odds are subject to change***