David Moyes
How would you assess your team today?
I don’t think we played well but we made enough chances to probably nick the game but I think the draw was the right result. Brighton played well, which made it difficult for us like they have done in the past as well. We had enough opportunities to probably get the game won and obviously there was a big call for VAR which you would probably expect me not to agree with but I think I have real reasons for not agreeing with it. I hope they’re able to explain exactly why the goal was ruled out because for everybody who’s watched it is nearly impossible to rule the goal out so I’m disappointed that that didn’t go in the favour of the team who scored the goal.
Have you had the opportunity to speak to the referee or the fourth official, have they given you an explanation about what they were seeing at the time because it certainly looked a bit bizarre from the TV pictures?
Well, the referee can’t do much about that. He didn’t see it. I think from his understanding he probably saw it as a goal the only people who can make those calls are VAR. So whoever was doing the VAR tonight had to decide why they would chalk a goal off and make that decision so I am hoping that somebody in there will come out and show exactly why the reason why they chalked it off because, for me, the last touch comes off Shane Duffy’s leg and goes into the net, and that was the reason why I saw it as a goal to us.
When you look at the game and you analyse it in this short space of time that you have now, did it unfold the way you expected because Brighton had 67% of the possession was that something that you sort of catered for and planned for?
That’s what I thought would happen they are good at it. Very good at it. We didn’t keep the ball well enough. We turned it over very quickly tonight and we didn’t keep it well tonight. But I think the big thing about it was the amount of goal opportunities we got from it even without an awful lot of possession today and it means a lot possession at times but I think more importantly is how many chances you make and we did not take them.
I think it’s now nine games in a row West Ham have failed to beat them. Why do you think you have a block when it comes to playing the Seagulls?
I think Brighton are a good team. I don’t know if I was here for all the nine games you’re talking about. Maybe I was, maybe I wasn’t I can’t remember but I can only tell you that they have a good style and make it difficult for you. Every time we play I want to try and improve on it. We got off to a good start tonight and we were not quite able to capitalise on that. We are in a difficult moment at the moment so we got through and it looked like we were going to win the game and probably should have done.
Three minutes it took to make the VAR decision do you think they were looking for a reason not to give it?
I think it’s so hard to call that not a goal. I think you’ve got to have something much clearer and I’m not going to use the word obvious but I think you need something much clearer to identify a reason why that goal cannot stand. I find it really really difficult that somebody could give that decision in the favour of no goal and that’s why I’m hoping that I will be shown a real reason for the reason why the goal should not have been given. I think it’s such a difficult call and obviously the time was also another reason why I suggested that he thought it was a difficult call.
The late equaliser is on the back of two defeats, how much does that sap your confidence? Are you concerned about that?
No not concerned because I think after we lost the goal we had two great chances to score one was off the line and the other Jarrod Bowen had a chance one on one with the goalkeeper. So if you said to me, you know, it showed some form or lack of confidence there I would say not. But I have said many times that we are trying to compete or trying to be consistent. We’re trying to find a good standard and for long parts of the season we have done so far. But we have just lost a little bit in what we’ve done in recent weeks. So hopefully, we can get it back.
Are you happy with the overall performance of the team? Because you had chances to score the second goal and didn’t.
I agree I didn’t really enjoy the performance overall but the opportunities we had to score tonight and chances we made and we need to get more clinical. I just think that we had two or three big chances to try and finish it off and we did not take it so that is a disappointment and I do think that we can play much better today.
There’s been a lot of talk about the players going forward over the last couple of games did you see that as an improvement tonight or do you think there’s still work to be done?
I thought there was a bit of improvement today. I think where we fell down tonight was where we turned the ball over. We weren’t very good on the ball, especially in the first half. We didn’t make good enough passes when we won the ball back but I have to praise Brighton for the pressure that they put us under. But I have to say that the players we expect to make good passes and help us retain possession and build attacks I didn’t think they did that tonight, but I was a bit happier that we got more opportunities to score tonight in fact we had quite a few opportunities to score.
Are you going to chase the Premier League or PGMOL tomorrow?
I don’t know if I’m going to chase it. Just saying I would like somebody to make it clear and tell us why. We are in a sport to score goals and if it is offside. I think the referees are doing a really good job I think VAR has been pretty good in the main. I think people will question a lot of things but why would VAR rule out something. If they’ve got something clear they’ve got a picture no problem I will accept that. But everything I have looked at so far there is nothing clear and they have ruled a goal out. We are in the game for goals not for people in a studio somewhere else to make that call. I don’t think the referees ever get involved in offside decisions ao that’s probably why the referee wasn’t involved today and didn’t go to the monitor. But I just felt that the ball came of Shane Duffy’s leg and goes in and I would like someone to explain it to me and the reason why they did not give the goal.
Is Antonio’s form down to the number of games he has played or the pressure of being West Ham’s only recognised striker?
I don’t think it is either of them because I think we’ve managed his games. I think he has set high standards and expectations which people have seen. So our hope is just like any striker that maybe he is going through periods of not scoring goals like strikers do. So I’m putting it down to that at the moment and hope we are due a bundle of goals from Micky soon. Some of Mickey’s play tonight was much better. The keeper makes a really good save from a header late on so there were one or two bits that were much better.
Do you put today down to not being clinical in front of goal?
It’s not the only reason we were trying not to concede too many goals. We’re doing okay at that at times. But I do think that our play has warranted more goals and I think we are a side who has. If you look at the clubs with a positive goals total I think there are only four teams and we are one of them. Mn City, Liverpool and Chelsea, that may have changed tonight but it shows you we have been scoring and we have certainly dried up a little in recent weeks.
