‘Deserved’ - West Ham manager pulls no punches after Newcastle United triumph
Julen Lopetegui hailed his West Ham United players after a “deserved” win at St James' Park.
An unfancied Hammers outfit travelled to Tyneside looking to end a four-game winless run. Despite a promising start, Newcastle United fell behind on 10 minutes through a poorly defended free-kick.
Aaron Wan-Bissaka added to Thomas Soucek’s opener in the second half to give the Magpies an uphill task with half an hour remaining. Eddie Howe’s men lacked belief late on and never looked like getting back in the game.
The defeat leaves Newcastle sitting 10th after 12th games but, more worryingly, is the lack of goals. After bagging 85 times last year, the Magpies only have five strikes from six home fixtures in 2024-25.
As for West Ham, they are looking to springboard up the table as the pressure levels eased on Lopetegui, Speaking post-match, the Spaniard dedicated the three points to the travelling West Ham fans.
“We are happy because we achieved three points,” Lopetegui told Sky Sports. “Overall, I think we played well. We had an identity and were able to (compete) against a very good team, Newcastle, the stadium is always (difficult to come to).
“We deserved to win in my humble opinion. We are happy for the team, for the players and, most of all, for the fans. There were more than 3,000 here and they have come a lot of miles. We are happy for them, we work for them. But we have to look forward to the next challenge - today is done.
“We are happy, but there is more work to do. We want to be a better team, with the ball and without the ball. Tomorrow, we are already looking for the next challenge. Our big challenge is to become a good team. If you want to compete in the Premier League, you have to run a lot.”