Kurt Zouma issued a scathing assessment of West Ham’s abysmal show at Fulham on Sunday, admitting his team were “nowhere near the levels” required and calling it one of the worst displays during his time at the club.
Only three days after claiming a superb win away at Tottenham, the Hammers were thrashed 5-0 by the Cottagers and missed out on the chance to climb into the Premier League’s top six.
“They were better everywhere on the pitch,” Zouma told the West Ham website. “They ran more than us, they wanted to win more than us, physically they were sharper than us. We couldn’t deal with them today.
“Physically, we were nowhere near the levels, even mentally I would say we were nowhere near the levels, me first. It’s a day to forget and we have to take responsibility.
“It was one of the worst games we’ve ever played since I’ve been here. But it’s behind us, it’s done, there’s nothing we can do about it. We can react and try to make it gone for good if we win the next one or two games.”
The defeat was the heaviest of David Moyes’s tenure as West Ham boss and afterwards the Scot vented his frustration at the tight turnaround between matches, questioning why last week’s trip to Spurs could not have been played on Wednesday rather than Thursday.
Fulham had hammered Nottingham Forest 24 hours earlier but Zouma refused to follow his manager’s lead in using the difference in recovery time as an excuse.
“I don’t know, maybe,” the Frenchman said, when asked whether it had affected the result. “But we’re professionals and we’re used to playing Thursday and Sunday.
“I know physically it’s hard, especially after the game we played against Tottenham, which was very difficult. But there was nothing for us today, a very, very bad day and I feel sorry for the fans that came.
“Losing 5-0 there’s nothing to say, just sorry to the fans that came to support us. It’s a day to forget and we have to bounce back very quickly.”
