Tomas Soucek thought he had won the game for West Ham United against Brighton on Saturday.
Soucek rose highest to meet a cross from Jarrod Bowen to head West Ham into a 2-1 lead against Brighton with around 10 minutes left to play.
The Hammers fans are sick and tired of the football being implemented by Graham Potter.
Bowen came out after the game and insisted that West Ham will bounce back against Tottenham next weekend.
Words are cheap though, it’s actions that matter.
One player whose commitment can never be questioned is Soucek.
The 30-year-old Czech Republic international gives his all for the Hammers every single time he takes to the pitch.
Soucek has actually been linked with an exit from West Ham this summer, with Leeds apparently keen to sign him.
Considering the huge culture problem we have at the London Stadium right now, letting Soucek leave might not be the best idea.
Tomas Soucek has an uncomfortable question for underperforming West Ham teammates
As far as I’m concerned, Soucek is one of only three West Ham players this season who is immune to criticism, alongside Bowen and Aaron Wan-Bissaka.
He may not be the most technical of central midfielders but boy does he give you 100% effort every time he plays.
A lot of his teammates could learn from him actually.
Soucek spoke to reporters after the Hammers’ defeat to Brighton on Saturday and didn’t hold back when he was asked what’s going wrong right now, as quoted by WHUFC.com:
“We were so happy with how we played in the second half [until the last five minutes]. We created a couple of chances, then we got level, and I thought I’d scored the winning goal.
“We were happy with how we played for 85 minutes. I think we were on it, showed how we wanted to play and what we wanted to show our fans, but obviously we cannot just switch off and think we have won the game already. We have to be focused for 100 minutes, even if there’s a bit of extra time. It just shouldn’t happen.
“Some people think it’s bad luck, some think it’s a coincidence [that we have lost too many late goals], and some have said other things, but I think it’s all together.
“I would say if we were more focused, it would not happen. It’s about mentality, and we need to be stronger. In the past, we were the team who always scored the last-minute goal, and we got the points, and we were very high in the table because of that.
“It’s the Premier League, so we have to be focused on that (not conceding late on in games) and prepared. We need to be the team that has more power at the end, and today wasn’t the case.
“We have to learn from this, and I think now, for us, the biggest challenge is the next game because it’s against our biggest rival, so I think in that game we can show how much we care about our Club.“
He couldn’t have made it any clearer if he tried. There is a big mentality problem at West Ham right now, and Soucek is asking his teammates, ‘are you up for the fight or not’?
Could Soucek be tempted by £120k-a-week offer to leave West Ham?
The 30-year-old may not be a Hammers player next season.
That’s because an unnamed Premier League club have apparently offered Soucek £120k-a-week to leave West Ham in the summer.
The thing is, with funds so tight at West Ham, Potter may well be tempted to cash in on the 6ft 4in midfielder.
However, I think moving him on would be a really bad call.
Soucek is one of the few players at West Ham who actually cares about the club.
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