West Ham United manager Slaven Bilić has stated that his side "need points" as they look to secure their Premier League status for next season in their Friday night clash with Tottenham Hotspur.

Ready for it

The Hammers have been battling at the bottom of the table for the majority of their first season but recent good form has seen them begin to pull away from the basement battle and into contention for a top-half finish.

Bilić's men currently find themselves on a four-game unbeaten run which sees them seven points above the drop zone, a positive result in Friday's clash and results going their way across the weekend will see them safe from the drop.

They will however face a Tottenham side that will be looking to keep the pressure on leaders Chelsea in the last leg of the season, despite been so much at stake the Croatian stated that it is going to be a special game.

"They need points, we need points," Bilić told his pre-match press conference. "To it is massive game for us and a massive game for them."

The coach stated to the gathered press: "We will try to get the points that will mathematically secure our status. You don't need extra motivation when you play against Tottenham."

"It is a big game for us, a big game for the supporters," Bilić added. "It is under the lights, which is always a special one, and we are ready for it."

Anything can happen in a derby

The clashes between the two sides across the years have proved fiery and one player that will know the fixture better than anyone is skipper Mark Noble, with the 29-year-old expected to make his 17th derby appearance on Friday night.

Noble - who recently passed the 400-game mark for the Hammers - admitted that Mauricio Pochettino's men are a "very good side", but stated that the hosts will be at 100 per-cent to try and grab a result.

"I can remember the very first time I played against Tottenham at White Hart Lane back in November 2005," Noble recalled to whufc.com. “Now we have tonight’s game and Spurs want to win the title."

"They’ve been on Chelsea’s tail the whole season and will want to put them under pressure," the skipper admitted. "They are a very good side without many weaknesses at all."

"But it’s a derby," he said. "We’re at home and we need to be at 100 per cent to be able to get a result."

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About the author
Danial  Kennedy
Award-winning sports journalism graduate. Currently studying a PR Masters at the University of Sunderland. Writing for VAVEL since August 2014. Twitter - @ddkjournalism.