Charlton's early advantage
In the opening match of the Championship season, Charlton Athletic secured a 2-1 victory over West Ham United at the London Stadium. Lloyd Jones struck the opener in the seventh minute after a long throw-in from West Ham allowed the ball to bounce inside the penalty area. The second goal came in the second half when Tyreece Campbell capitalised on a dispossession of Konstantinos Mavropanos near his own penalty area, putting Charlton 2-0 up. West Ham’s only goal was a stoppage-time penalty miss by Taty Castellanos, which left the scoreline unchanged at 2-1.
Nuno’s reaction to the defeat
Manager Nuno Espirito Santo admitted that the club had let its supporters down. He said, “It’s West Ham, the pressure is every day. It’s a big club. You just see our fans - there were 62,000 people in the stands and we let them down.” When asked if the large crowds at the London Stadium could galvanise opponents, Nuno replied that the crowd was for West Ham and that they failed to deliver the win the fans deserved.
Statistical overview
Despite the loss, West Ham dominated possession, holding 77 % of the ball. Their expected-goals (xG) tally was 2.96 compared with Charlton’s 0.57, indicating that West Ham created many more scoring opportunities. Nuno noted that the team “created a lot of situations but we weren’t accurate enough in the boxes.” He emphasised the need to improve defensive solidity and finishing, stating that the club would focus on “combinations in the final third and in one-on-ones” to convert chances in future matches.
Looking ahead
West Ham’s next fixture is a Carabao Cup tie against Southampton on Tuesday. The club will then return to league action with matches against the unbeaten sides Watford and Wolves. Nuno remains determined to bounce back, saying the team will “repeat, repeat, repeat - but keep the belief in the process.”
