Headline: Nuno Espirito Santo Criticizes West Ham’s Performance After Loss to Charlton
Nuno Espirito Santo expressed disappointment following West Ham United’s 2-1 defeat at home against Charlton in the Championship on Saturday. The manager stated that the team “let down” their supporters as they struggled to start the season effectively, having secured only one point from their first two matches.
West Ham aimed to bounce back after their relegation last May, but their journey faced an early setback. After conceding a dramatic two-goal lead in their opener, they experienced another frustrating match against Charlton, highlighted by Taty Castellanos missing a penalty in stoppage time.
When asked if he felt the weight of expectation due to the previous season’s relegation, Nuno replied, “It’s West Ham, the pressure is every day. It’s a big club. You just see our fans – there were 62,000 people in the stands and we let them down. This is the more disappointing feeling.”
Regarding the large home crowds potentially inspiring opponents, he remarked, “The crowd is for us and we let them down today. We were not able to do what they deserved, which was to win.”
Charlton opened the scoring in the seventh minute when Lloyd Jones capitalized on a mishandled long throw-in. The visitors extended their lead to 2-0 shortly after the break, with Tyreece Campbell scoring as Konstantinos Mavropanos lost possession near West Ham’s penalty area.
Despite having over 77% possession and an expected goals total of 2.96 compared to Charlton’s 0.57, Nuno acknowledged his team’s lack of efficiency. “We created a lot of situations but we weren’t accurate enough in the boxes,” he said. “We have to defend much better. We had a lot of possession and tried to break them down, which is not easy. We still created many situations that we should – and will, for sure in the future – finish better.”
Looking ahead, Nuno emphasized the team’s determination to improve, stating, “This season, it’s clear that we’re going to be protagonists and will have more of the ball. We [will work on] combinations in the final third and in one-on-ones, creating situations that can allow us to score.” He concluded by expressing confidence in the team’s future efforts, saying, “We’re going to repeat, repeat, repeat – but keep the belief in the process. We’re going to get together and bounce back.”
West Ham’s upcoming fixtures include a Carabao Cup match against Southampton on Tuesday, followed by league clashes with unbeaten sides Watford and Wolves.
Nuno Espirito Santo says West Ham United “let down” their supporters as they were beaten 2-1 at home by Charlton in the Championship on Saturday.
The Hammers are expected to challenge for promotion back to the top flight following their relegation in May, but have taken only one point from their first two matches.
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Having squandered a 2-0 lead in their opening game to draw at Burnley, their first home league match of the campaign ended in a 2-1 defeat by Charlton – with Taty Castellanos missing a stoppage-time penalty.
Asked whether he personally feels under pressure because of their relegation last season, Nuno said: “It’s West Ham, the pressure is every day.
“It’s a big club. You just see our fans – there were 62,000 people in the stands and we let them down.
“This is the more disappointing feeling.”
When it was suggested that the big crowds at London Stadium may galvanise opponents, he replied: “The crowd is for us and we let them down today. We were not able to do what they deserved, which was to win.”
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Lloyd Jones struck Charlton’s seventh-minute opener after West Ham allowed a long throw-in to bounce inside their penalty area and Tyreece Campbell put Charlton 2-0 ahead when Konstantinos Mavropanos was dispossessed near his own penalty area after the break.
“We created a lot of situations but we weren’t accurate enough in the boxes,” said former Wolves and Nottingham Forest boss Nuno, speaking after his team had more than 77% of possession and finished on an expected goals total of 2.96 to Charlton’s 0.57.
“We have to defend much better. We had a lot of possession and tried to break them down, which is not easy.
“We were still able to create a lot of situations that we should – and will, for sure in the future – finish better.
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“This season, it’s clear that we’re going to be protagonists and will have more of the ball. We [will work on] combinations in the final third and in one-on-ones, creating situations that can allow us to score.
“We’re going to repeat, repeat, repeat – but keep the belief in the process. We’re going to get together and bounce back.”
West Ham’s next match is a Carabao Cup tie against Southampton on Tuesday, with league matches against unbeaten duo Watford and Wolves to follow.
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