West Ham manager Nuno Espirito Santo has provided a brutal verdict of his side following their defeat against Leeds United at Elland Road earlier this evening.
Leeds scored a 2-1 win over West Ham at home, with Brenden Aaronson and Joe Rodon scoring in the first half. The win relieved some of the pressure on building on the Whites after back-to-back Premier League defeats.
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The home side needed a strong showing after a run of poor results, which saw them win just one game in their last seven, and in front of a roaring Elland Road, they produced a performance filled with grit and determination.
They moved up to 13th in the league table, but the defeat at Elland Road has further worsened a disastrous start for West Ham, who remain 19th in the league table and are a firm contender to drop down to the Championship.
‘We did not deal with Leeds United’, admits the West Ham boss
The West Ham manager conceded that his side were second best to Leeds in all aspects of the game, especially in the second half, and never really came to terms with the home team.
He stressed that his team need to work harder, and while Nuno believes that his side were better in the second half, it was still not good enough to beat a resolute Leeds team.
“We did not deal with them. We didn’t deal with the set-pieces, physically, with the second balls. We just did not deal with them moments at all. Those moments punished us”, Nuno told Sky Sports News.
“It’s clear that we need to work harder, we need to commit ourselves and be much better. We will do it, and I feel the players want it, but they need to stop switching off.
“We are practising these moments on the training pitch, but at the moment we are not able to deal with it. To change things, we need to deal with defensive situations.
“It’s clear that we need a striker who can hold the ball; that is on me for my selections. But second half, we played good, but it was not enough.
“The players know, the fans know, the coaches know that we need to change. It is not enough to play okay for 45 minutes in the Premier League.
“We will keep working. Tomorrow we go to work. It is up to us to give the fans more; we need to play better to achieve their full support.”
Leeds needed this win
After back-to-back defeats, Leeds needed this win over West Ham to restore some confidence in the team’s ability to stay up in the Premier League this season.
Farke also needed his team to step up, as the old questions about whether he is the right manager for Leeds in the Premier League were raising their ugly heads again.
With a tough away trip to Brighton lined up after the break, Leeds needed to beat a struggling West Ham side to get some points on the board and boost the team’s morale.
Elland Road were also waiting for the team to win their first home game since the opening weekend of the season, when they beat Everton under the lights.
The win takes Leeds to 13th in the Premier League, and while that may change depending on other results, Farke and his Leeds players will breathe a sigh of relief this weekend.
Three points against one of their relegation rivals is huge, as it pushed West Ham further into the quagmire while Leeds sit in a comfortable midtable spot.
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