Hammers star Ogbonna ready to put Conte friendship aside

Angelo Ogbonna has a good relationship with Antonio Conte but claims that will be put to one side when West Ham square off with Chelsea on Wednesday.

Ogbonna played under Conte during his time at Juventus before also being selected for Italy when the 47-year-old managed the Azzurri.

But the duo will be on opposing sides when the Hammers host Chelsea in an EFL Cup fourth-round tie at the London Stadium.

And despite West Ham entering that clash as underdogs, the defender is relishing the challenge ahead.

“I am looking forward to playing Chelsea on Wednesday,” said Ogbonna. “We are playing in front of our fans, so the expectation will be high and we will prepare well.

“I have a really good relationship with Antonio Conte, but this is football and I will put that to one side on Wednesday.”

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West Ham recorded a second consecutive Premier League victory over the weekend as Winston Reid’s late goal saw them snatch a 1-0 win against Sunderland.

And Ogbonna is relieved that things are starting to turn around for the Hammers after a slow start to the season.

“Every game is tough,” added Ogbonna. “We played really well in the first half, pressed, kept the ball, and sometimes you need a bit of luck.

“The most important thing is the performance. They weren’t good at the start, but now they are quite good.

“The atmosphere is good in the changing room, and it always has been. We knew that we had to get back [to winning] so Saturday was an important result.

“It was really hard to get back, because Sunderland wanted to move away from the bottom of the league and it was an important win.

“If we keep this level of performance it will be good for us. Step-by-step, the Premier League is a really tough league, so we have to be focused.”