New West Ham head coach Graham Potter says there is nothing they can do about the officiating error that helped Aston Villa back into their FA Cup triumph over the Hammers.
The London club were 1-0 up at Villa Park with 20 minutes to go, before Villa were awarded a corner, despite the ball not touching any white shirts before going out of play.
Unai Emery’s men scored from the resulting set piece, before Morgan Rogers grabbed the winner five minutes later.
It means Potter’s first game in charge ended in a loss, but he remained upbeat over the effort of his players.
He said: “We’re disappointed to go out and to lose, but the application of the players has been really good. They’ve carried out everything we’ve asked them to do in a short space of time.
“It’s disappointing to lose the players we did from an attacking perspective, that probably changed our threat. We had some more chances at the end but in the end Aston villa were too strong.
“We just try to get the team into a good shape. The talent is there but it’s just about trying to get the team together as a collective. That’s what we’re trying to do.
🗣️ “Disappointed to go out but lots of positives in the game, I think the players gave everything.”
How did you rate Graham Potter’s first game in charge of West Ham?#ITVFootball | #FACup | 🎙️ @KatieShanahan3 | #WHU pic.twitter.com/hwUebvV0fk
— ITV Football (@itvfootball) January 10, 2025
“After 2-1 we still had some chances at the end. We pushed and pushed, but it was not meant to be.
“Niclas [Fullkrug’s injury] looked a bad one so that’s going to be more time. Crysencio Summerville’s is a bit more precautionary. We’re hoping it’s less severe.”
On the corner, he added: “It didn’t look it live, we’re surprised it was a corner. But the referee has given it. There’s nothing we can do now.
“The players have had a big week, a difficult week. We need to recover and refresh and have a big game on Tuesday night.”
West Ham face Fulham on Tuesday in what will be Potter’s return to the Premier League.
