LEEDS, England (AP) — Nuno Espirito Santo became West Ham’s first manager since 2018 without a win in their first four games as his struggling team suffered a 2-1 loss to Leeds on Friday that exposed the same defensive weaknesses that have plagued them all season.
The Portuguese coach joined the Hammers a month ago after leading Nottingham Forest to European soil, but has been unable to immediately turn things around in east London.
Since taking over, they have now recorded three losses and one draw, matching Manuel Pellegrini’s record when he took over in 2018.
Off the pitch, supporters have also voiced their dissatisfaction with the board, with thousands boycotting the home defeat to Brentford.
The team struggled defensively throughout the season, conceding nine goals from corner kicks, three times more than any other team, leading to the dismissal of coach Graham Potter. And against Leeds, we lost 2-0 in just 15 minutes due to defensive hesitation once again.
Goalkeeper Alphonse Areola was unable to contain Noah Okafor’s header after three minutes, and American international Brenden Aaronson side-footed the ball away as the West Ham defense looked on.
The final line was similarly lackluster when Joe Rodon headed home unscathed from a corner kick 12 minutes later.
A deft header from Matheus Fernandes in the final minute gave the Hammers the winning goal, but the chance of an equalizer was never high.
The win moves Leeds into 13th place with 11 points, while West Ham are in 19th place with four points and the worst goal difference in the league.
This number of points is the worst on record at this stage of the season. The only other times the Hammers started as badly as they do now were in the 1932-1933 and 1973-74 campaigns.
“We are in a realistic situation and we have to face that reality,” West Ham captain Jarrod Bowen told Sky Sports. “We have to face the reality of the situation we are in and that we are in a difficult situation right now.
“Above all we have to go out there and fight. The Premier League is the toughest league. We are not playing well and we are not getting results. We need to change that. Only we can change that.”
___
AP Soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
