West Ham United 1-2 Tenfifteen FC
TST, WakeMed Soccer Park, Cary, North Carolina, USA, Thursday 5 June 2025, 10am EST (3pm BST)
West Ham United suffered a heartbreaking Target Score Time 2-1 defeat to Tenfifteen FC on Thursday, and now face an anxious wait to discover if they’ve progressed to the TST last 32 in North Carolina.
Having kicked off the tournament with a 3-1 victory over Brown Ballers FC early on Wednesday, the Hammers were unlucky losers to Villarreal later the same day as they fell to a narrow 1-0 defeat at the hands of the Spanish side in Target Score Time.
With their attentions focused on securing victory in their final group-stage clash against Tenfifteen, the Irons took a late lead when an unmarked Lucas Sousa tapped home in the 40th minute, but the game would change in Target Score Time.
Paul Lobo Kosséhassé levelled for Tenfifteen in the 17th minute of Target Score Time, and with the match's momentum shifted in favour of our opponents, Oscar Ocampo duly squeezed the winner into an empty net after a substitution mix-up.
The result sees West Ham finish third in Group G with a goal difference of zero, while Brown Ballers beat Villarreal 2-0 in the group's other fixture, but remain bottom.
While the top two teams from each group automatically qualify for the knockouts, the top eight ranked third-place teams also progress, meaning West Ham's fate is now in the hands of the other sides competing in the final group-stage match round on Thursday.
Dillon Vedral’s Hammers came into the match knowing victory would guarantee them a top-two finish, and they started on the front foot, as Justin Stinson saw an effort blocked before Nilton De Andrade stung the palms of Jesus Rivera, while at the other end, Ocampo’s rasping drive was expertly tipped away by Claysson De Lima.
Sousa was next to try his luck, twice firing wide of the mark, before Rian Marques guided the ball just wide from Lesia Thetsane’s free-kick, then Devin Vega burst into the box after latching on to Marques’ pinpoint pass, but was denied by Rivera.
West Ham continued to press and went close via Mauro Zárate, with our No10 sending one acrobatic effort off target and a second header just wide.
Tenfifteen hit back, with Kosséhassé’s strike being hooked off the line by Robert Palmer, and Ocampo’s header crashing off the underside of the bar just before half-time.
Buoyed by a strong finish to the first half, Tenfifteen came out firing after the interval, with Thierry Assamoi sending one effort wide and Dayerson Graterol firing a second a yard off target, while Rene Garcia fired into the side-netting having been picked out inside the box.
After 15 minutes on the back foot, West Ham countered. Leo De Oliveira saw a goalbound effort blocked, before James Collins met a corner with a towering header that diverted narrowly over the bar.
And then, just as it looked like the Hammers were set for a consecutive 0-0 draw at the end of normal time, with virtually the last kick of the game, Thetsane’s cross was sent deep to the far post, where Erik Pereira teed up Sousa to tap in from point-blank range and ensure we headed into Target Score Time with a 1-0 advantage.
With a Target Score of two set and a lot at stake, the opening period of Target Score Time had the hallmarks of a chess match.
And after West Ham goalkeeper Brian Orozco denied Graterol at one end, he almost became the unlikely hero at the other, when he was thwarted twice by the Tenfifteen shot-stopper.
At 4v4, the game became increasingly stretched, and Tenfifteen levelled in the 17th minute of Target Score Time via Kosséhassé.
Ultimately, it was a case of next goal wins, and as it went to 3v3, the Hammers looked to make a quick substitution but were left short of numbers at a Tenfifteen corner, with Ocampo taking advantage and sealing the win for his team.
Starting VII: De Lima, Palmer ©, Thetsane, Vega, Stinson, De Andrade, Marques
Subs: Orozco (GK), Ferdinand, Collins, Periera, Palmer, Sousa, Ali, De Oliviera, Anderaos, Zárate, Fiennes Tiffin, Vaz Tê, Rahul KP
Goal: Sousa
Vedral: It’s a tough one to take
West Ham United Head Coach Dillon Vedral was left bitterly disappointed following the cruel Target Score Time defeat to Tenfifteen FC.
The Hammers went into Target Score Time ahead courtesy of Lucas Sousa’s 40th-minute opener, but in a frantic finish, two quickfire goals from Paul Lobo Kosséhassé and Oscar Ocampo settled the contest in Tenfifteen’s favour, with the Irons now left sweating over their progression to the last 32.
“We were a lot more focused compared to game two (against Villarreal),” said Vedral.
“I got the boys prepared, and we were ready to go. We knew it was going to be a hard-fought match, and we got that goal at the very end, so we felt confident about what we were capable of in Target Score Time.
“But possession doesn't win games, you've got to take shots and take care of opportunities, and we didn’t do enough of that in Target Score Time.
“They (West Ham fans) turned up in their numbers. The Club has a fantastic, huge fanbase, and even after a defeat they're all waiting around for all these players that have put in the work to get pictures, autographs, handshakes and hugs.
“It's great to see, and we'll move on from here.”
