David Moyes says West Ham cannot fall into the same trap as Manchester United and must beware of any attempt from Sevilla to employ the dark arts.
United, Moyes’s former club, crashed out of the Champions League on Tuesday as Atletico Madrid used every trick in the book to frustrate and disrupt the Red Devils after taking the lead.
The Hammers host Sevilla, second in La Liga, for the second-leg of their last-16 tie at the London Stadium on Thursday. West Ham trail by a goal and Moyes says they must be ready for Julen Lopetegui’s side to do the same.
"The difference is how we are able to manage our emotions in a game where free-kicks could be given very cheaply," said Moyes.
"We don’t know the level of the refereeing we don’t know how much Seville [will follow Atletico].
"If you watched Atletico Madrid they did a great job on Manchester United in killing the game off at times so we have to be well aware how we manage that and we don’t let it get to us and keep our focus.
"We’re all key in that, we need to make sure we don’t get drawn into anything that could cause any form of giving the ref a decision to make regarding sending offs or bookings which can put you in jeopardy.
"We will try and make sure we play the game how we want to play. I thought the referee in Seville was excellent, a young Swiss ref and he was fantastic."
Should his side nudge into a lead over Sevilla, Moyes says he would not want his side to employ similar tactics.
Asked he if was a fan of the dark arts, Moyes said: "I’m not. This is a gentleman’s sport.
"In some way we’re all desperate to win and we’d kick your granny, if you know what I mean, to try to get a result. But in the same breath, I think behind it all, you want to win in a fair and correct fashion.
"If you can, you want to play well but when it gets to the real sticky moments and you want to get over the line, you want to win it. So we need to make sure we can do that. We know it will be a difficult night."
