There are no two ways about it; West Ham United are staring relegation down to the Championship squarely in the face right now.
Konstantinos Mavropanos was brave enough to come out and speak to the West Ham fans after the shambolic 3-0 defeat to Wolves on Saturday.
The Greek centre-back deserves credit for that, but something he said should fill the Hammers fans with dread.
Wolves were by far the better team at Molineux on Saturday, but the really concerning thing was that not one single West Ham player put in 100 per cent effort.
Humiliation at Molineux…
Where does this rank among West Ham's WORST ever Premier League defeats?
Nuno Espirito Santo has a huge task on his hands now, if he is to keep his team in the Premier League.
West Ham are very active in the January transfer window but it could all be a case of too little, too late.
If the majority of Hammers players have already checked out, what chance does Nuno actually have?
Konstantinos Mavropanos’ admission after Wolves proves why West Ham are struggling
Mavropanos was linked with a West Ham exit in the summer.
However, he remained at the London Stadium in the end.
Just like pretty much every other Hammer, he has been poor for the club this season. That said, he never shirks responsibility when it comes to speaking to the media after embarrassingly poor defeats.
When speaking to the club’s official website, Mavropanos first took time to apologise to the Hammers fans.
“First of all, we want to apologise to our fans because they are week-in, week-out supporting us and trying to give us some energy,” he said.
However, he then made an admission that highlights exactly what West Ham are in the situation they are currently in.
“They don’t deserve this. It was just unacceptable, especially the first half,“ the Greek defender admitted.
“We just have to work harder.
“After the game we were frustrated and disappointed, but we have to realise the situation we are in and work harder in training and in games. It’s important because there is only one way to solve the situation and it’s up to us.”
“We understand their frustration. When the situation goes like this, it’s normal that they react like this. That’s why I’m saying we just apologise to them and we have to work harder.
“It is what it is now, we just have to realise the situation we are in and just try to perform more.
“It’s been difficult for the coach, for us, for the whole team, for the fans especially. We can’t just talk and speak about games. We just have to show what we can really do because I don’t think these fans deserve to be in this situation really.“
Wow. Just wow.
The fact that Mavropanos has openly admitted that West Ham have to work harder during both training and games shows that the required attitude and application has been non-existent this season.
It’s little wonder why there have been so many tepid performances if the players aren’t giving 100 per cent during training.
Konstantinos Mavropanos’ message for West Ham fans about Nottingham Forest game
The only shining light for Nuno right now is the fact that Nottingham Forest seem to be equally as poor as his team.
Mavropanos explained how the onus is well and truly on the West Ham players to make things right.
If you could replace Nuno with one out-of-work manager, who are you picking?
And why?
“We have to change the situation. It’s as simple as that. Even if it’s not that simple, we have to do it.
“We have to bounce back as quick as possible.
“We have to stay positive because that’s the only way to work and try to do something and give something to our Club and our fans.
“We have to stay positive and we have to give everything we have so we get the win and get back on track.”
Nothing less than all three points will do for West Ham against Nottingham Forest on Tuesday night.
However, if the players fail to apply themselves correctly, it could be yet another long and frustrating night in East London.
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