West Ham United fullback Ryan Fredericks was pleased to feature in their 2-2 draw with friendly opponents Athletic Bilbao.

West Ham were edged out on penalties after Manuel Lanzini and Jack Wilshere struck to cancel out an early two-goal blast from the visitors, but even more valuable for Fredericks were the 81 minutes he spent on the pitch.

“It's always nice to come home," he told whufc.com. “We've been all over the world for the last five to six weeks, so it's nice to end it playing back at home.

“It's been a frustrating last couple of weeks. I rolled my ankle and it was just a precaution that I wasn't involved in the last couple of games, so today was valuable minutes on the pitch.

“That's the most important thing because you can do all you want in training, all the running and fitness you want, but nothing gets you prepared like games, so it was nice to get 80-odd minutes today.

“We're feeling ready for the start of the Premier League season now. At times we've played some good stuff this pre-season, we've worked on a lot and bedded in a few new players.

“We're confident for the new season and looking to push on and improve on what we did last season."