West Ham boss Nuno Espirito Santo apologises for 'embarrassing' defeat to Wolves – I never felt so bad on a football pitch
West Ham's 3-0 defeat to Wolves makes it nine games without a win under Nuno Espirito Santo and leaves them in the Premier League relegation zone; Nuno cannot recall feeling so bad on a football pitch after "embarrassing" loss to the bottom club
Sunday 4 January 2026 08:12, UK
Nuno Espirito Santo apologised following West Ham's 3-0 defeat to Wolves, describing the result as "embarrassing" and admitting he has never felt worse on a football pitch.
Facing a team without a Premier League win all season, West Ham were three down before half-time and never looked like fighting their way back into the game.
Unable to force Wolves goalkeeper Jose Sa into a single save, West Ham gifted their opponents a first clean sheet of the campaign, extending their own winless run to nine games. West Ham are four points from safety as the pressure builds on Nuno.
"I have to apologise to the fans, I have to apologise," he said. "We have to apologise to the fans, those that travelled today, it was embarrassing. There's not much I can say other than we are sorry, we are sorry, because what we showed today was not good enough."
Nuno added: "We needed much more from our players. The way we started and the way we performed was very poor, it was embarrassing because I don't recall one day that I felt so bad on a football pitch like today."
Asked to elaborate on what it was that his players did not deliver, Nuno explained: "It was a failure of many things, mistakes and not reacting to those mistakes, making mistakes and then a second mistake and over and over again not being able to control and create any situation of danger.
"I think we didn't achieve one shot on goal, so that says a lot."
Nottingham Forest, the team immediately above West Ham in the Premier League table, visit the London Stadium on Tuesday evening. There is work to do but not much time in which to do it.
"Now it's about recovery, it's a quick turnaround, recovering not only physically but more than anything, it's to address the situation and being clear among ourselves that we need much more today," added Nuno.
"I am particularly sad to say this but what I saw today from our players is not good enough."
Can West Ham turn things around?
The Irons did have new signing Pablo, acquired from Portuguese club Gil Vicente, among the substitutes but he did not come on at Molineux. Taty Castellanos has also been linked with an impending move as West Ham try to spend their way out of trouble.
But Nuno knows that it will amount to little unless the existing players show far more than they did against Wolves.
"It's not only about the players that are coming, I think those that are here, we are the ones that should improve and make our signings that they are going to join us, find themselves in a better team, a team that competes much better than we did today."
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Merse, Redknapp deliver damning verdict
Paul Merson and Jamie Redknapp gave a damning assessment of West Ham and their survival chances after a 3-0 drubbing at Wolves.
Merson said: "I can't see it (West Ham getting out of trouble).
"With Fulham, Brighton, Wolves, Nottingham Forest, I thought, 'Get 10 points out of these games and you've got a chance.' Three games gone and you've got one point. I think they're relegated.
"They'll be building a new team if they go down to the Championship. They have to have a go. It's a must-win game (against Forest on Tuesday) because their fixtures after this aren't kind at all.
"After 15 games, it's two wins for Nuno. Was it the right change? It's easy in hindsight but I'm going to say no. They're petrified at home. the fans pay decent money to watch this team and they need to see more. I think it's an absolute cup final on Tuesday."
Redknapp said of the situation: "It's desperate. The fans have had enough. It's not been good enough by any stretch of the imagination.
"I can only imagine what the dressing room is like right now but somehow they have to get together because it looks like they're staring relegation in the face.
"It was difficult for Graham Potter but Nuno has not had the desired effect. They conceding goals, goals from set-pieces.
"Jarrod Bowen said in midweek it was the first time he'd seen his team fight and that's quite damning. When you're in this predicament you have to fight for every inch and this side don't.
"Some of the players maybe think they're too good for this situation - well, they're not.
"If they're incredibly good in the transfer market they might have a chance. Things can quickly change but with this squad they go down. They have to find something but that's precarious for the club if they have big wages and go down. It's a massive dilemma but they have to try something."
West Ham's woe in stats
- West Ham are now winless in their last nine Premier League matches (D4 L5), their longest run since their final nine games of the 2010-11 campaign when they were relegated.
- Nuno is the first manager in Premier League history to lose against teams starting the day bottom of the table with two different clubs in the same season (also 3-0 with Nottingham Forest against West Ham in August).
- West Ham have conceded 41 goals in the Premier League this season, their most after 20 games in a top-flight campaign since 1965-66 (44).
- West Ham have conceded more goals in the opening five minutes of games than any other side in the Premier League this season (4).
Analysis: West Ham's day of misery
Such is the pessimism of supporters that those of every club will have feared for some time that they would be the club to provide Wolves with their first win. It seems fitting that it was West Ham. A team playing with even less confidence than the bottom club.
Wolves had only led in three of their previous 19 games this season and never by more than one goal - winning none of them. That West Ham contrived to go in three down at the break shows just how abject they were, failing to win duels or track runners. Awful.
The away fans started chanting about their own relegation early on. They joined in with the songs that were mocking their own team. Even booed their own player Max Kilman. It was the Wolves fans singing Nuno's name not them. Jeered at half-time and full-time.
The lack of a meaningful response after the interval was almost as damning. Wolves had not kept a clean sheet prior to this either but West Ham failed to force a save from Sa. Asked to chase the game in the second half, they had nothing attacking to offer.
Unlike Wolves, there is time for West Ham to salvage their Premier League status. But that game at home to Forest has taken on greater importance now. Lose that and they will be seven points from safety. The mood must change very fast if they are to stop it.
