West Ham United forward Niclas Fullkrug was furious with his teammates for failing to carry out manager Graham Potter’s instructions in their 1-1 draw against already-relegated Southampton on Saturday.
The Hammers looked set to grab a first win in six games, after going ahead through a Jarrod Bowen early strike in the second half from a stunning counter-attack.
The Saints however stunned their hosts with a 93rd minute equalizer through on-loan Chelsea midfielder Lesley Ugochukwu, who fired in off the post as they recorded their 11th point of the season, matching Derby County for the worst-ever point tally in Premier League history.
Speaking after the game, German striker Fullkrug lashed out at his teammates who were also whistled by their fans at half-time and full-time.
He said: “It’s a mindset problem. Very angry today. Not disappointed, just angry about what we did after the goal. It was difficult to bring the boys back to push up. We didn’t push up anymore. We tried, but we didn’t have the ability or motivation to push up again.
I’m very, very angry that we played like this. It’s not the first time that we scored a goal, and the next goal-kick we just shoot the ball long, we don’t try to play football anymore. We just sink”.
Graham Potter’s side struggled to create much opportunities against the league’s worst defence who had the better chances to grab the lead, although they were denied by the crossbar in the first half.
The Hammers have now failed to win any of their past six matches in the league since a 2-0 win over Leicester City in February.
“That’s not the way we want to play. Why can we play 65 minutes before with possession, even if it’s not perfect, trying to create chances and score, and then we do score, and after that half of the team try to score again, and the other half of the team just try to defend very deep”, Fullkrug added.
“That’s not the way it works. We have to find a way to have togetherness, to have the idea of where we want to go and what we want to do.
The coach is very clear about what he wants, but we have to do it all. Everyone has to do it.”
West Ham United remain 16th after the setback with 36 points, one point ahead of 17th-placed Wolves who travel to Manchester United on Sunday.
Olakitan is a young writer with a strong passion for sports, having gained experience with IndyPress and Nimelssa Press. His enthusiasm for sports inspired him to cover events both within his school and beyond. With a deep understanding of the game and a refined skillset, he brings sports coverage to a broad, global audience in a way that’s engaging and accessible.
