No one was more disappointed following Fulham’s defeat to West Ham than Whites’ right back, John Pantsil. Fulham had started much the brighter side and were comfortably calling the shots in the first half. That was up until the Hammers struck with two smash-and-grab strikes toward the end of the opening 45 minutes.
“It’s a big disappointment to the entire team and especially our fans; we couldn’t make them happy today,” said a downhearted Pantsil. “This is part of football; we’re going to learn from our mistakes. We are very down about the defeat but we must now look ahead and get more points to get back up there.”
If conceding two sucker-punch goals was bad enough, Fulham were given a mountain to climb in the second half with the dismissal of Andy Johnson moments before the break.
“It was a big blow to the team,” Pantsil added. “Playing ten against eleven against a team that is leading by two goals wasn’t easy for us. When we went into the dressing room, the Manager changed things around and we pushed forward, pushing the right and left backs more forward and that changed a lot for us.
“We should have got the equalising goals but unfortunately we couldn’t make it. So we will learn from our mistakes and next time we will do it better.
“We were always looking for the first goal. We were trying our best - we were unlucky in the first 20 minutes then things turned around when they got the first goal.
“I don’t like defeat at all, especially when I look up and see the fans shouting, paying money to come and see the game and then go home disappointed. I always want to see the fans happy, cheering and signing for the team. So no matter what the situation is, we the players have to stand firm and do everything possible to put a smile on their faces because they deserve it, they love the Club and the players, they put their money in and buy season tickets and we must respect that.
“I love the fans so much and they appreciate everything that we do, even when we were down they were still shouting for us – we promise that we will do everything possible to lift their morale up.”
