Nuno Espirito Santo never seemed like the type to hog the glory and, unsurprisingly, his Premier League Manager of the Month nomination is something he is keen to credit the whole of West Ham United for.
From his in-form players to the coaching staff, all the way through to the supporters.
Nuno Espirito Santo spoke from day one about the importance of getting the fans and the players pulling in the same direction once again at West Ham United.
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As Callum Wilson sent the London Stadium into raptures two minutes into time added on against Everton, it certainly felt a far cry from the days when Jarrod Bowen was exchanging heated words with the visiting supporters at Molineux during the dregs of the Graham Potter era.
Nuno Espirito Santo hails improved West Ham United atmosphere
Bowen and Dinos Mavropanos both earned nominations for April’s Player of the Month award. Nuno, meanwhile, is battling against Leeds’ Daniel Farke, Manchester City’s Pep Guardiola, Brighton’s Fabian Hurzeler, Bournemouth’s Andoni Iraola, Nottingham Forest’s Vitor Pereira and Liverpool’s Arne Slot for the manager’s gong.
“I think it [is a compliment] for everybody, not only ourselves for at Rush Green but our fans,” Nuno said when pressed on the subject during his press conference on Thursday.
“One of the things that we should be proud of is we are improving our connection and our relationship. This is a club nomination. It’s not a nomination for myself. There is a lot of people involved.
“It’s a club nomination. Everybody can help. Being nominated is a reflection first of all of the hard work the boys have been putting in on the grass in recent games. Our character and the way we are competing shows a lot about ourselves.”
The improvements in the London Stadium atmosphere, of course, goes hand in hand with better results. West Ham can move five points clear of Tottenham Hotspur – albeit potentially for just one day – if they beat Brentford away from home this weekend.
The Hammers will then host Arsenal and Leeds, either side of a trip to Newcastle. West Ham have not lost any of their last nine home games outside of the penalty shoot-out defeat by Leeds in the FA Cup quarter-finals.
Nuno, therefore, feels that two home games in the final three matchdays bodes particularly well for their survival prospects.
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“The results have helped a lot in terms of atmosphere,” Nuno adds. “No matter what, we have to stick together. We have been through tough moments. The smiles were not there, but the respect was present every day.
“Realising we have to change things and we have been able to change. The players have a smile on their faces and this makes everything easier in terms of implementing the ideas we want.”
Surprisingly, no West Ham boss has claimed the Manager of the Month award since Sam Allardyce in 2014, despite David Moyes’ highly-successful spell in charge.
Nuno, then, would end a 12-year wait should he be rewarded for an unbeaten April which saw the Hammers claim seven points from a possible nine, including beating Moyes’ Everton on home soil.
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