Cheikhou Kouyate cut a frustrated figure after the Hammers slipped to a first defeat of the season by Leicester City
Cheikhou Kouyate bemoaned a bad day at the office on Saturday, after West Ham United were undone by two first-half Leicester City goals at the Boleyn Ground.
Though Dimitri Payet’s first Barclays Premier League goal offered the Hammers hope in the second period, Kouyate admitted the damage had long since been done.
And on the back of a stunning start at the Emirates Stadium a week earlier, West Ham’s Senegalese midfielder could scarcely hide his disappointment.
“It's no good,” he confirmed. “You win your first game at Arsenal, a very big game, a very good game. You go to Arsenal in a derby, win 0-2, and then afterwards you come to a home game and lose. It's very hard to take.
“We didn't play well on Saturday. Leicester played very well, they were very compact and very strong. It's obviously a bad day for West Ham.”
Though West Ham’s second-half revival was a spirited one, Kouyate felt the Hammers had already given themselves too much ground to claw back after a below-par first 45.
That said, the hosts certainly had the wind in their sails after Payet’s goal and, but for Kasper Schmeichel in the Leicester goal, might have rescued a point.
He continued: “We paid the price for the first half, we weren't there. The 'keeper made some good saves but the fact we've lost the game on Saturday is down to us.
“Leicester played on the counter attack, but the game was probably decided after the first half. It was a horrible first half for West Ham.
“After we made it 2-1, we had confidence and had energy – but we didn't make the right decisions.
“They're a team who came here to sit back and wait, so it was for us to find the answers. It was all blocked down the middle, so it was about trying to pass down the sides, but it wasn't to be on Saturday.”
Though Dimitri Payet’s first Barclays Premier League goal offered the Hammers hope in the second period, Kouyate admitted the damage had long since been done.
And on the back of a stunning start at the Emirates Stadium a week earlier, West Ham’s Senegalese midfielder could scarcely hide his disappointment.
“It's no good,” he confirmed. “You win your first game at Arsenal, a very big game, a very good game. You go to Arsenal in a derby, win 0-2, and then afterwards you come to a home game and lose. It's very hard to take.
“We didn't play well on Saturday. Leicester played very well, they were very compact and very strong. It's obviously a bad day for West Ham.”
Though West Ham’s second-half revival was a spirited one, Kouyate felt the Hammers had already given themselves too much ground to claw back after a below-par first 45.
That said, the hosts certainly had the wind in their sails after Payet’s goal and, but for Kasper Schmeichel in the Leicester goal, might have rescued a point.
He continued: “We paid the price for the first half, we weren't there. The 'keeper made some good saves but the fact we've lost the game on Saturday is down to us.
“Leicester played on the counter attack, but the game was probably decided after the first half. It was a horrible first half for West Ham.
“After we made it 2-1, we had confidence and had energy – but we didn't make the right decisions.
“They're a team who came here to sit back and wait, so it was for us to find the answers. It was all blocked down the middle, so it was about trying to pass down the sides, but it wasn't to be on Saturday.”