Ben Wilmot said this afternoon’s test against Tottenham Hotspur was just what the team needed and puts them in good stead going into Friday night’s Championship opener against Middlesbrough.
Goals from Domingos Quina and Andre Gray earned a 2-1 victory, with Heung-min Son scoring a consolation from the penalty spot for the visitors.
“It was a good performance, we needed a test like that before going into next week’s game, so it was a decent game,” said Wilmot, speaking to the brand-new Hive Live Extra post-match show.
“We needed it and we’ve been working hard this week on all sorts, defensive shape and movement going forward, and it all seemed to come to play today, so we’re happy with that.
“We’ve been working on defensive shape and movement all week really and the gaffer has brought in a new style of play defensively and asked us to do a few things some of us aren’t really used to. But everyone’s got the hang of it pretty quick and we looked pretty comfortable out there.”
Returning from a season-long loan spell at Swansea City which saw the south Wales side reach the play-offs, Wilmot has good experience of Championship football and is looking to mount another promotion push this year.
“I was excited to come back and I’m just raring to go really,” said the centre-half.
“I was disappointed to miss last week’s game, but I’ve been training hard for the last two weeks now so I was just glad to get 90 minutes today and I’m looking forward to next week.
“Personally, I want to play every game, and like the rest of the team, I want to go straight back up. If I can do my bit to get us straight back up then happy days, but that’s the overall aim really.
“I know what’s coming and I know what to expect, whereas some people maybe won’t. So in that sense I might be at a slight advantage but everybody’s going to learn quickly and we haven’t got time to not learn really. So, everybody will get used to it and I think we have a right good chance of going straight back up this year.”
There are a number of new faces and plenty of fresh ones around the Hornets camp, with many youngsters given a chance by Vladimir Ivić in pre-season, and Wilmot sees a desire in these players to make a starting spot their own.
“We’ve had a good atmosphere, a few new people have come in and me and a few other people have come back,” said the 20-year-old.
“Everyone seems really keen to impress and do well this season. Last season was what it was, and we’ve all put that behind us. We know the target for this season, it’s pretty straightforward and clear. Everyone’s excited and looking forward to the season.
“It was the perfect game today, we needed a test like that and I think we did perform well. We’ve got to take that into next week now, everyone’s looking forward to it and it should be a good start.”
