West Ham United captain Jarrod Bowen understands he and his team-mates need to start eradicating the mistakes from their game which led to the Hammers falling to defeat to a 2-0 Brentford at London Stadium on Monday.
Brentford took a deserved lead in the 43rd minute when Kevin Schade nudged the ball to Igor Thiago, and his shot just had enough power to creep over the line, despite Alphonse Areola getting a hand to it.
In truth, the Bees could have scored more goals, but Thiago hit the post, had a goal ruled out for a tight offside call, and the excellent Schade also smacked the woodwork with a powerful header.
The Hammers never seriously threatened an equaliser in the second half before substitute Mathias Jensen sealed victory in stoppage-time when he fired the ball into the roof of the net after latching onto Keane Lewis-Potter’s pass.
And Bowen admitted we were second-best in east London on what was a difficult evening.
“It probably was how it looked. It was 2-0 but probably could have been more to them,” admitted Bowen. “I thought we started the game well, were on the front foot and got a few corners and a few set-pieces of our own.
“I felt we started really well. I thought we defended as a whole set pieces well, and we had our luck at times.
“I think when you’ve not been at home for three weeks or so now, the first one back after the international break we wanted to start well and get the crowd on their feet. Obviously to score a goal would have been the icing on the cake, but we didn't do that.
“We started well, and then they came into the game and had their moments. I think we just had to stay in there, as they put a lot of pressure on us from corners.
“On the whole we defended well, they had a few chances, but they didn't score. The goal that we conceded was really poor, and then we got away with one on the stroke of our time to go 2-0 [when Thiago's strike was ruled out following a VAR check for offside].
“I think it's one of those where you've got to look back at it, watch it, as difficult as it is.
“You're only going to get better by watching the things that you haven't done so well. It felt like that in the game, that they had better chances and that they got in better areas of the pitch.
“Like I said, it's time to reflect on it, see it back and start putting it right to what we're doing. Ultimately we're not doing anything well this season, and that's shown in the league and the results.”
Meanwhile, Bowen believes West Ham are playing with too much fear and must continue to retain belief in their ability.
After a tough run of results, that is somewhat understandable, but Bowen has urged his players to remain calm and says they will soon reach the high standards required to improve results.
West Ham play again on Friday night, and our No20 says a swift return to action at Leeds is an opportunity to turn the corner.
He said: “I think ultimately confidence comes from winning games and having good performances, and we haven't done that this season. That's going to be a low, but what we've got to do as a group is trust what we've got in the changing room.
“We can’t be fearful in this league because if you're fearful in this league, you're going to lose games. I feel like that's what we're doing. We've got to rally together and take every challenge head-on.
“There's got to be no fear in this league. It's never going to be given to you, especially in the position that we're in now. I think I spoke before, and I said it's going to take us to get us out of the situation that we're in.
“That's what we've got to do. We've got to face up to the challenge. No one's going to do it for us. No one's going to give it to us. When we go on the pitch, it's players taking pride in their performances.
“We put in a really, really poor performance. We play on Friday night up at Elland Road, which is a really difficult place to go. That's a challenge that you've got to stand up to.
“Having played there before, it's a difficult place to go. In this situation, you have to hit every challenge head-on. I believe that's the only resolution for the situation that you're in.
“You've got to roll your sleeves up and just dig in and work, and I’m confident things will change.”
