Mads Hermansen reflects on the agony of Premier League relegation with Leicester City, an experience he's determined to avoid with West Ham. The goalkeeper openly discusses the strain of being at the bottom of the league, but believes the lessons he's learned from last season, combined with West Ham's recent 4-0 win over Wolves, have instilled cautious optimism in the team's ability to avoid the same fate. "The fear of where we might end up, it's not easy to work with," Hermansen admits, "but credit to everyone at the club for keeping spirits high and making us believe we can turn it around." With their unity being a key strength, Hermansen highlights the importance of the team's togetherness, saying, "Every single person brings their personality to the team, and we have great characters willing to give everything for the club." This season has also been a personal test of resilience for Hermansen, who after being dropped early on, has since made more saves than any other Premier League goalkeeper and kept four clean sheets in eight matches.
"I wanted to prove to my teammates, the club, and the fans that they made a good decision in signing me," he reflects on his difficult start. "I'm happy I got another chance to show what I can do." Hermansen takes pride in how he used his time out of the team to improve, focusing on managing his emotions to better perform on the pitch. "I'm quite an emotional guy, so I had to learn to separate my emotions from the football aspect and just do my job," he explains.
With West Ham moving out of the relegation zone for the first time in a month, Hermansen and his teammates are aware that their job is far from over. "We believe a lot in ourselves; it's going to get tough, but we believe we have a lot to give," he concludes.