David Moyes has stated that West Ham should have been leading 3-0 at half-time against Bayer Leverkusen in the Europa League on Thursday.
The Hammers exited the competition in the quarter-finals to the German champions after their second-leg showdown finished in a 1-1 draw in east London.
Michail Antonio scored first for Moyes’ side before Jeremie Frimpong equalised for the Bundesliga side in the 89th minute.
Moyes, who led West Ham to Europa Conference League success last season, was proud of his team’s performance.
‘If anything, we probably should have scored three in the first half and we did not take the chances when we should have,’ Moyes commented after the match.
‘In the first leg we were much deeper and defended incredibly well for the best part of 85 minutes.
‘Tonight we were completely different and put them under a lot of pressure. Really we should have been 2-0, possibly 3-0 up at half-time.
‘The likes of Man City and Liverpool have come here over the years, and I’ve always said I want to challenge the big teams.
‘I thought we challenged them well tonight. Just not quite enough and that’s the difference.
‘They’re probably at a higher level and they certainly have more options to choose from on the bench, which they had again tonight.
‘It made it hard for us to maintain the same levels of energy we had in the first half tonight.’
Meanwhile, West Ham striker Antonio was extremely angry after the clash and criticized the match officials.
‘It doesn’t feel like you’re playing against 11 men, it feels like you’re playing against 13…14 including the two linesmen,’ he said. ‘I felt like I didn’t get a call all game.’
