Potter: West Ham 'hurting' after last-gasp defeat to Brighton

Graham Potter cut a frustrated figure following West Ham’s last-minute 3-2 loss to Brighton, as he conceded nobody would want to take any positives from the game.

West Ham thought they had wrapped up their first win in just under two months, with second-half goals from Mohammed Kudus and Tomas Soucek helping to turn the tide following Yasin Ayari’s 13th-minute opener at the Amex Stadium.

But it was not to be for Potter against his former club, as Kaoru Mitoma equalised before Carlos Baleba completed the comeback with a stunning strike from distance in the second minute of stoppage time.

The loss leaves West Ham 17th in the Premier League, though Potter’s side are safe from relegation following Ipswich Town’s loss to Newcastle United.

Speaking to BBC Match of the Day, Potter voiced his frustration at the result and the way the season has gone for his side.

“The ability to sustain [our performance] is the biggest factor. We did a lot of good things,” Potter said.

“We have been done by two goals from outside the box. We created chances, scored two goals, but you need to sustain that and that is the challenge for us.

“Nobody wants to hear about the positives but there were some over the course of the game, but I am in too much pain to talk about the positives.

“But the emotion of the result is hard to take. We just have to accept that feeling and deal with it.

“We have lost, thrown points away at the end and we are hurting.”

When asked about Premier League safety being confirmed, Potter added: “We have to acknowledge the season we are having is a bad one. The fact we have stayed clear is good but not good enough. We have to do better.

“We are in the middle of a bad season, and psychologically, the players are affected.

“Physically, there is a challenge to sustain the good things in a game, and there were good things. But when you lose in that manner it is hard to see that.”

It has been a challenging campaign for West Ham. They have now lost three successive Premier League away games for the first time since May last season, while only Southampton (five), Ipswich (five) and Leicester City (four) have collected fewer points than the Hammers since Potter’s first game in charge (13).

Potter has also endured tough returns to the Amex since leaving Brighton in 2022. He has now lost both Premier League games against his former club, having also suffered a 4-1 defeat as Chelsea boss.

Brighton boss Fabian Hurzeler, meanwhile, was delighted with the resilience his team displayed.

“This is a great feeling and I'm very happy for the supporters, team and staff because they worked really hard,” he told BBC Sport.

“They have suffered in the last period but today they got what they deserved. We always had the belief and trust in our ability to win the game. At the end they didn't force it, they stuck to their game plan and made good decisions. So, the credit goes to my players.”

When asked about the chance of qualifying for European competition next season, Hurzeler added: “They can talk about it. We just focus on the next game against Newcastle.”

Only in 2022-23 (62) and 1981-82 (52) have Brighton earned more points in a top-flight season than their 51 this term.