West Ham United manager Slaven Bilić has stated that his Hammers side "fully deserved " their 1-0 win over bitter rivals Tottenham Hotspur, which mathematically secured their Premier League status for next season.
Quality in our game
The odds were against West Ham going into this early weekend clash, as Spurs were hell bent on keeping the pressure on league leaders Chelsea who weren't in action until the Monday.
However Mauricio Pochettino's side was slow to get into gear with Harry Kane's excellent first-half effort been the only chance of recognition, Christian Eriksen and Son Heung-min came close in the second period but the effort from Manuel Lanzini secured the three points.
"We played against a great team, a team in form, but we deserved it," Bilić told Sky Sports on his side's performance. "We defended in numbers and exactly as we wanted."
"The game plan was there but it's the players who did it on the pitch," the coach stated. "It was character, determination."
"But also you can't win against a team like that with only character," the Croatian added. "There was quality in our game."
About the players not my future
That victory secures West Ham's top-flight status with two matches to play, as the win sent them up into ninth in what has been a very tough first season at the London Stadium.
The Hammers have spent the majority of the season near the bottom of the table which has brought Bilić's future at the club into consideration, but when asked about his future after Friday's clash Bilić insisted that the night and celebrations belonged to the players.
"I felt they were behind me when we were losing five games and all that," he said. "I think I'm doing a good job."
"I don't like to moan but we had so many obstacles this season," the 48-year-old stated. "That are quite rare in football."
"Let's not talk about me tonight," Bilić concluded. "It's only about West Ham and the guys showed that tonight."