David Moyes hopes his West Ham legacy will provide the platform for the Hammers to springboard to new heights.
Moyes’ last West Ham match at the London Stadium proved a 3-1 Premier League win over Luton, with local teenager George Earthy climbing off the bench to fire the winner with his first touch.
Taskmaster Scot Moyes will leave West Ham after next weekend’s season-closing trip to Manchester City, with Julen Lopetegui waiting in the wings to step in.
The 61-year-old brought West Ham their first trophy since 1980 with last year’s Europa Conference League triumph, amid previous Premier League finishes of sixth and seventh.
Moyes was brought back for a second West Ham stint in December 2019 on a rescue mission to avoid relegation.
And now the ex-Everton boss has insisted he has transformed the Hammers to the point where the east Londoners can spend their future looking up.
Admitting emotions caught up with him at full-time, Moyes said: “Sometimes all you hear is negative stuff, but the best part of 50,000 people stayed behind after the final whistle.
“To join a football club and do something is not easy for any manager.
“Hopefully I’ll walk away with people saying I’ve done something here, and that expectations have been raised.
“When I came in I was asked to steer them away from relegation, and people were saying I was good at that.
“But now this is a club that’s saying we want to be in Europe every year.
“It’s a big turnaround in that time.”
Moyes has already admitted he will take an extended break this summer before assessing his future options in football.
But the former Preston and Manchester United manager insisted he will leave West Ham with no regrets.
“I do believe it’s the right decision for both me and the club,” said Moyes.
“West Ham’s got so much potential, so much to improve on loads and loads of things.
“And if they do that they can go again and that’s what I hope they can do
“The next step will be to keep going upwards, and this is the chance to probably get something new they are looking for.”
Albert Sambi Lokonga headed Luton into an early lead, but the Hatters were to end the day on the brink of relegation. James Ward-Prowse drilled an equaliser, before Tomas Soucek’s smart volley turned the tide.
Homegrown 19-year-old midfielder Earthy had time to bag a maiden West Ham goal to boot, to leave the hosts and their fans delirious in the warm spring sun.
Moyes had joked in midweek that he would not deliver any animated goodbyes to the crowd – then afterwards quite seriously revealed he cut a low-key figure due to Luton’s predicament.
“I was really careful because I know how Rob Edwards would be feeling,” said Moyes.
“He’s a young manager doing a brilliant job at Luton.
“I think everyone has appreciated how they have worked, and the threat they have generated at home.
“I’ve been relegated before and it’s a horrible feeling.
“Once we made it 1-1 I felt we had the best chance of winning, and that was the case.
“I felt great at the end but also disappointed for Rob.”
