West Ham United grabbed their first points on home soil in the Premier League this season with a 2-1 win over Newcastle United at the London Stadium – and Michael Carrick has praised the Irons for their incredible mentality to win from a losing position.
West Ham had gone four games without a point at home, losing to Chelsea, Tottenham, Crystal Palace and Brentford in the Premier League at the London Stadium so far this season, with the Hammers being blasted for their performance against Brentford especially.
That changed with a 2-1 win over Eddie Howe’s Newcastle on Sunday thanks to a spirited first half comeback, taking them to within three points of safety.
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And the manner of the win certainly impressed Michael Carrick, who lauded Nuno Espirito Santo’s side for their winning mentality – one that will have them in good stead in terms of remaining in the league.
West Ham United manager Nuno Espirito Santo shouts instructions during his side's defeat against Arsenal
Photo by Alex Pantling/Getty Images
Carrick says West Ham’s mentality will stand them in good stead for Premier League campaign
West Ham were under the cosh immediately against Newcastle, with Jacob Murphy scoring after just four minutes.
A failure for West Ham to bring a striker in over the summer would have had fans fearing the worst.
But from there on in, Nuno Espirito Santo’s men were the better side. Lucas Paqueta’s scorching equaliser dragged them back into it, and when Sven Botman put through his own goal, it gave them the lead.
Even through the second half they were dominant, with Freddie Potts having a third ruled out for a marginal offside. And Carrick praised the Irons for their mentality in seeing a win over the line after coming back from a losing position.
The former Hammers midfielder told BBC Sport: “West Ham have done really well after falling behind and their response was so positive, which is difficult to do when you are in the position they are in in the league.
“It would have been easy for their heads to go down and struggle, but they have been the team on the front foot and have spent so much time in Newcastle’s half.
“They deserved their bit of luck with the own goal, so credit to them.”
A win for the Hammers took them to 18th in the Premier League, and a huge six-pointer against Burnley next week could see them go level with the Clarets on 10 points, or ahead of them with a win of three or more goals.
With that in mind, it’s a positive trait to have going into the remainder of the season’s relegation battle if they can come from behind to do so in future fixtures, rather than struggle to find a way back in as West Ham did in their loss to Chelsea.
West Ham manager Nuno Espirito Santo.
Photo by Michael Regan/Getty Images
Michael Carrick made his name at West Ham
Many football fans will remember Michael Carrick for being the underrated man in the Manchester United midfield during their golden years with Cristiano Ronaldo, Paul Scholes, Ryan Giggs and Wayne Rooney taking the headlines.
But despite growing up in the North East, Carrick came through the youth ranks at West Ham.
Part of a squad that won the FA Youth Cup, Carrick made his first-team debut in 1999 and didn’t look back with another five years of first-team football, including 101 Premier League appearances.
Club Premier League appearances Premier League goals
West Ham United 101 5
Tottenham Hotspur 64 2
Manchester United 316 17
A failure to return from the second-tier forced a move to Tottenham, before he moved on to Old Trafford after two years in North London.
Carrick ended his career with 34 caps, five Premier League titles, an FA Cup and three League Cup trophies, as well as a Champions League and Europa League on the continental stage.
If he had stayed at West Ham alongside the likes of Rio Ferdinand, Joe Cole and Frank Lampard, there’s an argument to be made that West Ham would have been one of the leading clubs in the country.