Speaking to WHUFC.com, West Ham United midfielder Cheikhou Kouyate has revealed the seven Irons teammates he admires the most, and he says they helped him find his best form again following a difficult start to the campaign for the 28-year-old.

The Hammers were struggling down the wrong end of the Premier League table under Slaven Bilic earlier in the season, and the Senegal international was one of those players that wasn't performing to the best of his ability and was coming under scrutiny from the London Stadium faithful at games and on social media.

Kouyate struggled with ankle and hamstring problems in 2017 but he has since bounced back in 2018 and has put some eye-catching performances in as David Moyes' side continue to keep out and away from the relegation zone, and he has put the change in fortunes down to his teammates.

Speaking to WHUFC.com, the midfielder said: "I love my teammates.

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"Marko [Arnautovic], Arthur Masuaku and Manu [Lanzini] have helped me to get back to my top level. They spoke to me a lot and told me 'take your confidence, you are the best'. It's the same message from Adrian and from Jose Fonte. I know that today I am getting back to my best and I have to thank my guys.

"Marko is unbelievable, but not only on the pitch but outside the pitch, because we need people like him, like Arthur, Adrian, Manu, Jose, [Pedro] Obiang and the captain."

West Ham United face a trip to a free-scoring Liverpool side on Sunday, and Kouyate will be hoping to register a 10th consecutive Premier League start to try and help his team pick up some more valuable points.