Manuel Pellegrini said he was “ashamed” of his West Ham players after seeing them crash out of the FA Cup to the League One side AFC Wimbledon.
With his team trailing 2-0 at half-time, the Chilean manager withdrew three players but saw Wimbledon extend their lead within a minute of the restart. Asked if he had shown his anger to his players during the break, Pellegrini, who refused to answer questions about Marko Arnautovic after the forward signed a new contract with the club, said: “Yes, of course. I was ashamed of them.
“It was great for Wimbledon because it is a team that from the first minute to the last minute wanted to win the game and fight for every ball. Against them they had a team which didn’t have any desire to win. They started the way we needed to start and when you have such high pace with the quality of the players, we didn’t have the same level.”
West Ham pulled two goals back through the substitutes Lucas Pérez and Felipe Anderson before a frantic finish saw Toby Sibbick seal a deserved victory for Wally Downes’ side. It means the club in its current incarnation have reached the fifth round for the first time, having been formed in the wake of the old club relocating to Milton Keynes. Their manager said he was very proud of his players.
“Every day they are making history,” Downes said. “We made it by getting here for the first time – when we played Haringey and Halifax [in rounds one and two], Wimbledon were the giants waiting to be killed.
“They have really worked their socks off to get this far and now they have proved they can be the giantkillers as well. A lot of that was about trying to get through those first two games. This is terrific. I am pleased for the boys.”
He added: “They put in a shift. I was surprised at 3-0 – you do not expect to be 3-0 up against a Premier League team. At half-time I said to them: ‘You don’t get medals handed out at half-time’ and it was important we approached the second half and proved that with an early goal.”
