Hawa Cissoko says that West Ham United Women are prepared for their final Barclays FA Women’s Super League match of the season.
The Irons take on Arsenal at the Chigwell Construction Stadium on Sunday afternoon, in a game that is being shown live on BBC Two, iPlayer and the BBC Sport website.
Cissoko is hoping that the team can bounce back from a poor showing last weekend against Manchester United, which saw the Hammers on the wrong end of a 3-0 defeat at Leigh Sports Village.
And for the French defender, it’s important that the team bounce back from that disappointment and try and stop the Gunners from picking up a victory on the final day – a victory that could see them lift the FA WSL title if other results go their way.
We are definitely prepared for the game and we know it will be tough
We will continue to prepare in training to make sure that things go our way on Sunday because we are all so disappointed about the Manchester United game. We didn't stick to the plan and play as well as we could have done last week, and so this time we are making sure that we stay focused and train hard because we really want to do better.
This season has certainly been a good one.
I can't say it's been the most successful because throughout the season because we have lost some points at the last minute from winning positions. So overall, I would say it's been a good season but we know that we can do better. I am happy and proud of the team though for what we have achieved this season.
The main achievement for this season is that we’ve doubled our points tally.
Everyone has been happy to be here and train with each other – which is so important when you want to have a successful team moving forward. It's not just a team here at West Ham, it's the real family feel within the squad that's made the difference, I think.
We go into every game trying to score goals and put points on the board
We know that if we want to be a big team then we have to play like a big team. Going into games with this sort of mentality can make a big difference.
Of course, we'll see what happens during the game but the most important thing that we can do is to approach the tie with a winning mentality. Hopefully that will help us to pick up some points on Sunday.
I’m pleased with how this season has gone for me personally
I know there are some things that I am not happy about and some details that I need to work on, for example when I received a red card. Of course, there are always things that I wish I could change about the season but overall, I am happy with my performance. I’ve managed to play a bigger role this season than I did in the last campaign too.
The thing that makes me most proud is knowing that people are happy to have me in the team as a person and as a player. I'm looking forward to next season, knowing that I've done well this season and been proud to be a part of the team.
