Mohamed Diame admits starting the last thee games ensured he showed manager Sam Allardyce he is “important to this team.”
Making his first start since the Swansea match he demonstrated he’s ready to do all he can to remain in the starting XI.
He said: “It was an important game for me because I’ve started the last three games on the bench. It was important for me to show the gaffer that I’m important to this team. And I will keep going, keep working to make sure I keep my place.”
After today’s 3-0 win over Fulham he said: “I really enjoyed it, I think all the team enjoyed it. We’re back again to working hard together, defending and attack as a unit. This is pay-back, when you work hard as a team like this, you have to win.
“I had a lot of chances to score a goal, but [recently] I’ve been missing those chances. On Saturday, I had that little bit of luck, so I’m happy about that.
“I work hard to chase the ball and I put the pressure on the midfield, so I won the ball back and just ran. I saw Modibo [Maiga] on the left but I took my chance and I had the good fortune that a Fulham player touched the ball and the ‘keeper didn’t see it. We’ll just keep going and work hard for the next game.”
He added: “When you’ve lost at home, like here against Chelsea 3-0 and you go straight back to win 3-0, always you have the confidence to play the next game. We have just three days until we play against Crystal Palace and we need to make sure we take the three points there.
“I hope it can [kick-start the season]. We need to improve and keep working like this until the end of the season. Fulham and Crystal Palace are both towards the bottom like us, so we need to take the three points on Tuesday too.”