Jan Paul van Hecke believes that the 2-0 victory over Ajax will give the team a huge lift in self-belief.
A first win in six matches and a first clean sheet of the season, he insists, will set the team up for the remaining three Europa League Group B matches as well as the Premier League challenges to come starting against Fulham at the Amex on Sunday.
“I think the group is wide open now,” the defender said. “Everyone has something to play for including top spot and this gives us a boost in confidence for the last three games.
“We hammered each other because we didn’t have a clean sheet yet and of course you see a bit of a lack of confidence that we didn’t. So we’re really happy with the first one and hopefully we can continue now.”
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It was also significant, van Hecke said, that the team overcame the absences through injury of Pervis Estupinan, Tariq Lamptey, Solly March and Danny Welbeck.
“We missed some big players on Thursday, and we have quite a lot of injuries but I think the squad is big enough. You could see we still have a strong team and good players on the bench so I think we have enough to fill the gaps. We have quality on the pitch and our strikers can always score.
“I think we had a lot of control of the ball and we needed to be patient, and scoring before half time made it easier for us. It was the perfect moment. In the second half you could see they came out a little more, although not too much, but it opened up space for us. At 2-0 we had perfect control and maybe could have scored a few more but at the end it was a good three points for us.
“I think we can build on this. If you don’t win for five games you lack confidence a bit but now everyone knows we can win again with good football and have total control on the pitch.”
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Like many members of the squad, van Hecke credits head coach Roberto De Zerbi for his present form.
“It made a big difference when the manager came in,” he said. “I needed to adapt quickly. It took a while before I got some minutes but at the end of last season I had like four games in a row and it went quite well.
“So I was full of confidence in pre-season and this season has gone very well for me. Hopefully I can continue with it.”
Another boost came with his epic harnessing of Premier League top scorer Erling Haaland in the 1-1 draw at home to Manchester City in May that guaranteed that the club would compete in the Europa League this season.
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“I knew I could do it because we play against really good players in training and I told myself to be sure I was ready,” van Hecke said. “I couldn’t really do anything wrong, because he was always scoring goals and he didn’t so that was a really important moment for me and a breakthrough in the team.
“Now I’ve played in all three of the Europa League games and the Premier League quite a lot, so it’s really good for me. And when you win it’s even more special.”
Beating his country’s most storied club will also increase the 23-year-old Dutchman’s profile back in The Netherlands.
“I was telling myself before the game: ‘Now you need to show people in Holland’!” he said. “Of course they watch the Premier League but you know how it goes, if you play against Ajax you get more attention. Luckily for me it went well. A proud moment for the club, for everyone I think. Yes, special.”