Łukasz Fabiański admitted being caught up in a mixture of emotions in the immediate aftermath of the full-time whistle on the south coast, after two late strikes yielded a 1-1 draw with hosts AFC Bournemouth.
An entertaining encounter delivered its first goal three minutes before the end of normal time, with Lucas Paquetá looking to have nicked all three points for West Ham United from the penalty spot after a VAR check deemed that Tyler Adams had handled Aaron Wan-Bissaka’s cross.
But even before the board went up for eight minutes of added time, the Cherries were back on level terms when substitute Enes Ünal stepped up to curl a sumptuous free-kick past Fabiański into the top left-hand corner of his net.
Though our Polish stopper accepted there was an element of what might have been, on a night when the teams shared a total of 45 shots, and Fabiański himself made eight saves, he is confident the result and performance demonstrated that the Hammers are going in the right direction.
“I’m not sure I’d describe how I’m feeling as disappointed,” our No1 said. “Coming into this game, we knew it was going to be tough, because they’ve proved so many times this year that they have lots of energy and strength.
“They’re also very good when it comes to physical preparation. They always keep going until the last minute. Obviously, we wanted to win, and we scored a late goal, but you have to give credit to Bournemouth because they were good tonight and they created many chances as well.
“There is disappointment, but at the same time, playing away from home against a team who have already beaten many of the big sides this season, I think it’s a good point for us overall. I think as a team we’re getting towards where we want to be, and are starting to be more consistent.”
Indeed, the draw - against a Bournemouth side who have trumped the likes of Arsenal, Manchester City and Tottenham on their own turf this term - follows up victory over Wolverhampton Wanderers at home last time out, and lift the Irons to within six points of the top six.
While Fabiański enjoyed his eighth successive game in-between the sticks at the Vitality Stadium, at the age of 39 years, seven months and 28 days, he is still looking for personal improvement in the weeks ahead, and is confident he can help his side climb up the Premier League ranks in the remainder of the festive period.
He added: “Whenever people ask me about my age, they usually start by saying sorry, but actually I’m going to give myself a tap on the back. I think it’s a credit to the way I’ve been consistent with my preparation over the years, how I’ve trained, and my mental approach to football in a demanding league.
“I’m just going to try to continue working like I always have done. I think there are always things I can do better, and as a team we continue to work on aspects of the game that the manager demands of us.
“We have had some bad results this season, but even though it’s taken longer than we would’ve liked, I think we’re getting there. If you look at our performances in the last couple of games, and in training, there are lots of good things, and we’ll be looking for another good result now against Brighton on Saturday.”
