A display full of heart and endeavour was not enough for West Ham United Under-23s as they fell 4-2 at home to Liverpool in Premier League 2 on Friday afternoon.
The young Hammers fought hard in moments of severe adversity, falling behind after just seven minutes played before battling back to lead at half-time for the first time this season.
Two well-worked team goals finished off by Oladapo Afolayan and Mesaque Dju gave them the lead, but the game turned during a difficult spell just after the interval.
Shortly after the restart, Liverpool equalised from a corner, before going ahead from the penalty spot in an incident which saw West Ham goalkeeper Joseph Anang receive a straight red card.
An injury-time strike eventually settled the game in the Reds' favour, but West Ham U23s lead coach Dmitri Halajko was pleased to see his side still create plenty of chances in the game, even with ten men.
Halajko reflected: “There was plenty of effort and plenty of heart, but also some really naïve mistakes that have cost us goals.
“There was some good desire, some good work rate and some good effort, but the goals we’ve given away again today, you just can’t give away. That’s what’s cost us the game.
“This group of players will always keep fighting. They’ll always keep going. We went down to ten men and lost a goalkeeper, which is a big moment and will turn any football match, but even against that, in adversity, they still kept going and still created chances.
“They still did everything they could to win the game. If it weren’t for some of the silly errors, they still probably had enough to win the game.
“We’ve got to cut them out. We’ve been saying that for a few weeks now but haven’t managed to do it, so it’s an area for concern.”
Although a difficult result extended the Hammers’ winless run at the start of their Premier League 2 season, there were a number of positives to draw from their performance against a talented Liverpool U23s outfit.
I thought Manny was very good down the left. He’s been out for a month, so it was his first game back and to perform like he did was very good; his assist was very good
Dmitri Halajko
Left-back Emmanuel Longelo was particularly impressive for the home side on his return from injury, providing a fine assist for Afolayan’s goal with an inventive run and precise cross.
Midfielder Keenan Forson was also industrious in his first competitive appearance of the season, while defenders Jamal Baptiste and forward Kamarai Swyer also made an impression on Halajko.
“There are some positives in there as well,” the lead coach noted. “I thought Manny was very good down the left. He’s been out for a month, so it was his first game back and to perform like he did was very good; his assist was very good.
“Keenan has been out for a long time and hasn’t played much football, but came in and played well.
“Jamal and Kamarai were the only two youth team players on the pitch – Liverpool didn’t have any youth team players today – so they were the two youngest players out there and will have learnt and grown a lot from today.”
