Nuno's West Ham speculation warning after relegation is confirmed after beating Leeds United
Boss Nuno Espirito Santo saw his West Ham side defeat Leeds United - but still go down.
West Ham boss Nuno Espírito Santo refused to address his or his players' futures after being relegated despite beating Leeds United.
The Hammers did their bit, beating the Whites 3-0 at London Stadium, but Spurs' win over Everton confirmed West Ham's fate and an 18th-place finish in the Premier League.
The home side could and should have found themselves behind at the break, but Leeds were guilty of wastefulness in and around the area. Dominic Calvert-Lewin missed a glorious chance to open the scoring from just a few yards before the sides went down the tunnel goalless. Mistakes in possession and poor defending allowed the hosts to take control in the second half with goals from Taty Castellanos, Jarrod Bowen and Callum Wilson. But it wasn't enough.
"It's a moment of deep sadness for all of us at the club," said Nuno. "It was a tough day. We lost the privilege of deciding our own future. It was not only up to us, we did our part of the job but it didn't happen."
Nuno was peppered with questions about what could happen next at West Ham, with him and with star players like Bowen. But he would not answer them, instead saying it was a time to respect the supporters' frustration and anger.
"If you ask me now about the past and the future, everything, it's not today," he said. "Today is to understand the moment of sadness of our fans, our club and apologise and thank them for all the season, the support they gave us. And respect them. None of us had a minute to think about individual future, it was all about trying to stay positive, trying to keep belief going, preparing the team and focusing on details. First of all we have to go through this bad moment."
The message to his West Ham players in the dressing room after the win was of a similar refrain.
"We were aware of the situation since we joined, the difficult situation, the players more than anyone were aware of how hard it was," he said. "It was not enough but 39 points normally would keep you up. Now we need to go through this period of sadness. I told this to the boys. It's not about me, we are in a tough place and West Ham has to go back in the Premier League. Now we need to understand the frustration and anger of the fans."
He did however warn supporters that the coming days will be filled with media speculation on what will happen with individuals now that Championship status was confirmed.
"We have to be ready for many things coming out in the press, tomorrow and the day after, about speculation on all of us," he said. "But today is not the day to speak about it. We're going to solve it together. We have time to make decisions, it's not today to make rash decisions."