West Ham: ‘We have to bring the fans together’ – why Nuno has a ‘huge job’

There were empty seats ahead of West Ham’s clash with Brentford in the London derby. And a lot during the match. And more so as the match approaches its end.

The fans left booed their team after a miserable 2-0 defeat that could easily have been 5-0.

These are toxic times at the London Stadium, with some fans walking away in protest against the club’s management.

New Hammers coach Nuno Espirito Santo – who are yet to win after three matches – admits the players will have to work hard to get fans back into the stadium.

There was no sugarcoating this performance that the head coach gave with his post-match judgment.

“Not good enough. Bad,” said the Portuguese, who was officiating his first home match for West Ham since replacing Graham Potter, after two away trips.

“Brentford more or less won the game, they were the better team.

“I think we are all worried. You can see that our fans are worried. Anxiety turns into anxiety, then into silence. This anxiety transfers to the players. We have a problem.

“It’s understandable. It’s up to us to change. The fans need to see something they like and can support us and give us energy.

“I understand it, I completely understand it, I respect it. It’s up to us, it’s up to us to change it. We’re the ones who have to bring the fans together again.”

West Ham ranks nineteenth with only four points from the first eight matches. They are in action next in the Premier League too, as they visit Leeds on Friday.

Nuno told BBC Sport: “It’s a challenge for all of us. It’s up to us to change the momentum and get our fans back behind us. In four days we need a big improvement.”