There was no shortage of awkward talking points for Graham Potter to run through after West Ham United slipped to 18th in the Premier League table with a 2-1 home defeat to Crystal Palace.
The boos which rang around an incandescent London Stadium both at half-time and following the referee’s final whistle, not to mention the 78th minute removal of Mateus Fernandes.
Graham Potter was also asked, unsurprisingly, about the set-piece issues which once again left West Ham United looking like a team trying to compete with one arm tied behind their back.
Jean-Philippe Mateta became the seventh player to score from a set-piece against Potter’s side this season already as Crystal Palace edged out the Hammers on a tense, drizzly afternoon.
Speaking to BBC Sport, after Potter walked down the tunnel to a chorus of jeers, a man on the brink also accepted that any plans they had to press high and restrict space backfired.
Graham Potter rues tactical failings as Crystal Palace beat West Ham United
Oliver Glasner had Adam Wharton back in his starting XI after the England international missed last week’s 0-0 draw with Sunderland.
On countless occasions throughout the first-half in particular, Wharton would bypass Lucas Paqueta and Mateus Fernandes with an inch-perfect through ball. With Daichi Kamada and Yeremy Pino drifting infield, and James Ward-Prowse hardly a natural defensive midfielder, Palace certainly had plenty of joy in the centre of the park.
“I think it was a spirited performance, maybe until the last bit when the wind was a little bit out of our sails because of the effort the players put in to stay in the game,” sighs Potter, West Ham failing to muster much of a response to Mitchell’s 68th minute winner.
“I thought we pushed them back, attacked and played with real spirit. I really feel for the players. The [Mateta] goal knocked us a little bit. You have to respond better. There were moments where I thought we were good today.
“I thought we started the game well, in terms of with the ball and trying to attack. [But] we struggled throughout the first-half to get the balance between pressing them and not opening ourselves up too much. We didn’t do that well, that destabilised us a bit.
“We adjusted it and it was better, and we created a lot more opportunities. But the scoreline is a sore one. We are disappointed.”
Potter accepts London Stadium boos as set-piece issues appear again
While West Ham legend Tony Gale questioned Potter’s game-management and team selection, the sight of Soungoutou Magassa sitting on the bench with Palace dominating the midfield battle felt particularly galling.
Potter was greeted to a volley of ‘you don’t know what your doing’ chants from the home fans, meanwhile, when the popular Fernandes was replaced late in the game. Not that he has any problem with the supporters expressing their distaste.
Potter’s record of six wins in 25 games is, after all, plenty of cause for concern.
“The results are not what we want at all,” Potter adds while pressed on that set-piece Achilles heel. “I feel for the players, the supporters, because it’s a tough time. We have to stick together and find a solution
“We’ve addressed [our weakness from dead-balls] and we’re working to improve it. We conceded too many, had to defend a lot. That is something we also have to look at. It’s just constant work on the training ground.
“I think the reaction of the supporters was fair. They were totally in the game with us. We had to suffer a little bit which is normal at home at times, but I think the crowd were there in the second-half. Then, at the end, we didn’t respond as well as we’d like in the last part of the game.
“We have to accept the results aren’t positive and try and turn that around. It’s always a feeling of we have to improve, find that balance, find that solution, because clearly we haven’t got there yet. We need to do it and we need to do it quick.”
