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David Moyes says the visit of Atalanta will be a "big test" for West Ham United as they wrap up pre-season at the London Olympic Stadium.

The Italian's finished third in Serie A last season and arrive in east London as one of the team's to watch this season.

But before they launch their league campaign they have the small matter of facing Moyes' Hammers in Stratford - a game that the manager believes will be a tough test for his side.




“Today sees our biggest test so far,” he said in his match notes for today's programme. “Atalanta finished the season really strongly, coming third in Serie A and qualifying for the Champions League.

“They are a little different from many other Italian sides. They are aggressive in their play and their approach and have a lot of very good players in their squad. I am looking forward to the game and it will be a big test for us.

“We are really grateful that Atalanta have made the trip to London Stadium to play us and we hope the game will be beneficial to both us and them as we both prepare for the season ahead.

“The new season is now just around the corner. We know it will be a challenging one but we approach it with confidence and excitement. We have a good set of players and personalities at this club, as they demonstrated so many times last season.

“We will approach every game trying to win it with the aim of another positive season as we all look to keep pushing West Ham United forward.”

Meanwhile Moyes admitted that he couldn't wait to see the fans back in the stadium when the two sides lock horns this afternoon.

“It’s fantastic to have a significant amount of you back today,” he said. “It will be the first opportunity for some of you to watch live the West Ham who performed so well last season and I know the players are looking forward to your wholehearted support.

“I know you will appreciate just what was achieved last season. We now have another big campaign ahead of us and we are all excited at the club about the prospect of European football back at West Ham.

“There are big challenges which lie ahead and there is much to be positive about but, more importantly, we want to keep improving the team and ensuring the squad keep playing as well as they did last season.”

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