Maximilian Kilman was left bitterly disappointed following the cruel, last-gasp 2-1 defeat at Liverpool on Sunday, but he stressed there are plenty of positives to take from the performance into the final six fixtures of the season.
The Hammers went behind to Luis Díaz’s 18th-minute opener, but in a frantic finish, an own-goal by Andrew Robertson in the 86th minute of the game looked to have rescued a point for the Hammers, only for Virgil van Dijk to dramatically grab a winner for the hosts three minutes later - the goal that settled the contest in Liverpool’s favour.
And joy turned to despair for Kilman at Anfield, with the defender admitting the team are hurting following the twist of fate against Arne Slot’s Reds.
“It’s a really tough one to take,” said Kilman. “There aren't many times you go to Anfield and create chances like we did, and for most of the second half we were probably on top of them and probably could have won the game in the end.
“It was tough, but after the equaliser, we should have defended a bit better and tried to counter that last chance that they scored from. However, there are lots of positives to take and we’ve got a big game coming up on Saturday [against Southampton].
“They [Liverpool] are top of the league, and obviously it’s one of the hardest places to play, but we defended really well, stayed in the game, and our message at half-time was to really push in the second half, which we did, and we created lots of good chances, so it’s unfortunate we didn't take anything from the game.”
Kilman, who has been ever-present in West Ham's backline this season, thinks he and his teammates can gain plenty of belief having run the top-flight’s best side close, and is confident of a strong finish to 2024/25 as we look to boost our current 17th-place position.
Graham Potter’s side imposed themselves on the game, having eleven shots - four of them on target - and hitting the crossbar twice through Mohammed Kudus and Niclas Füllkrug.
Indeed, by the end, you could sense a feeling of relief inside Anfield as referee Andrew Madley blew the full-time whistle.
“We can take a lot of encouragement, lots of positives, and we just need to keep pushing on because we've got big games coming up,” added Kilman. “We can hold our heads high and push on for the rest of the season.
“It’s been really good (defensive partnership alongside Dinos Mavropanos and Jean-Clair Todibo). Whoever plays has to do a job and we all always have to be ready. I think today we all played well, showed lots of encouragement, worked really hard together and showed that we can play together.
“For the last six games we want to put in one hundred per cent and come away with as many wins as possible. We're not slowing down now. We’ve definitely got six big games to go, and we want to show that and end the season really high.”
