Jan Vertonghen before meeting West Ham: ‘I always saw this club as a sleeping giant’

Jan Vertonghen, who played eight years at Tottenham, will find an English team on his way, Thursday (6:45 p.m.), with the reception of West Ham by Anderlecht as part of the 3rd day of the Conference League.

“I have always seen West Ham as a sleeping giant”said the defender on Wednesday at a press conference. “The last two years they have finished in the top-6 or the top-7, but before the results were less good”explained Vertonghen.

The most capped Red Devil in history believes that this match can be useful for his younger teammates. “It’s good to be able to play against a big name, to get to know a team of this level.”

This meeting also offers Anderlecht the possibility of bouncing back after another defeat in the league, against Charleroi on Sunday (0-1). “It’s good that there are so many games to play, otherwise the weeks are very long after such a defeat. We can try things on a tactical level and give playing time to those who need it.”

Vertonghen acknowledges that “It’s always frustrating not to win”. But the defender, who arrived at the end of the transfer window, “group sentiment follows a positive line, regardless of results. I heard that Sunday’s loss was different from previous ones. We missed scoring opportunities, otherwise we would have won. We started the match well, with a lot of aggression and intensity. Only the result was missing. We train very well. We just have to wait for a good result.”

Vertonghen is convinced that with “this combination of players and staff, great things are still possible and we want to show them.”