Cresswell reveals 'perfect' Stoke City and West Ham scenario ahead of reunion

Aaron Cresswell has set his sights on returning Stoke City to the Premier League this season and hopes former club West Ham will join them.

Cresswell is due to face his former employers next season after spending 11 years in the capital, which culminated in European glory under David Moyes three years ago.

But after a disastrous season in the Premier League last term, West Ham are back in the Championship as they look to bounce back to the top flight at the first attempt.

Nuno Espirito Santo's side are hot favourites to win promotion, but Cresswell is hoping Stoke can finally achieve their own ambition of dining at the top table of English football once again.

And he says that while West Ham was a significant chapter of a long career, his sole focus is on achieving success at the bet365 Stadium.

"I spent 11 years at West Ham, and it was obviously a massive part of my footballing career and life," he told the Sentinel.

"My two kids were born down there, but I'm at Stoke now. My focus has got to be here, and it certainly is.

"There's a professional element, and do I want Stoke finishing first? Of course.

"Do I want West Ham to go up? Definitely. But my main aim is to get this club back in the Premier League. As I say, my focus is on Stoke, not on West Ham."

Cresswell said he was disappointed to see the Hammers lose their top-flight status last term in what was an awful season.

A disastrous start ended Graham Potter's reign as manager, and he was replaced by Nuno, who attempted to galvanise a team that was low on confidence after a poor run of results.

There was a point in time when they looked a good bet to beat the drop, but ultimately they could not finish the job, leading to their return to the Championship for the first time since the 2011/12 season.

Cresswell remained an interested observer but felt they had just given themselves too much to do, despite their valiant attempt to fire themselves out of trouble.

"It was obviously disappointing as a fan looking on," he said. "I went to a couple of games there last year. I think the start just left them with a gap too big to close.

"They had a right go at the end of the season, but ultimately it was too late. For a club of that size and that stature, it shouldn't be anywhere near the bottom.

"Hopefully, see how they get on this year, and they get back up there, but the perfect scenario for me is we both get promoted on the same day."

If Stoke are to upset what the bookies believe will be a Wolves and West Ham double, they will need to learn from last season, when they started promisingly before injuries affected their form.

Mark Robins' side began to lose ground, and the season ended with them a long way off a promotion push.

Speaking from their pre-season camp in Austria, and asked where Stoke needed to improve, Cresswell said: "I don't like using it as an excuse with the injuries, but you look at the way we were playing in the first two or three months, I genuinely thought we were fantastic at times.

"We had some unbelievable results away from home. We petered off around November, December onwards with injuries but I think consistency is crucial.

"Any team which gets promoted from the Championship finds consistency. They normally find themselves up at the top end of the table. You've only got to look at Hull having a late surge or whatever you want to call it, and ultimately getting back up into the Premier League is the be-all and end-all."

The transfer window is open, the rumours are flying, and everyone is talking about who Stoke City will sign and who they might sell.

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