Jarrod Bowen said West Ham’s “deserved” victory over Newcastle was “a long time coming” and insisted all players wanted to “change the situation we find ourselves in”.
The Hammers won only their second game of the season, and first since August, coming from behind to claim a 3-1 victory thanks to goals from Lucas Paqueta, a Sven Botman own goal and a stoppage-time effort from Tomas Soucek.
The win ended a seven-game losing streak and a first home win since February, and Bowen was delighted to get that winning feeling back at the London Stadium.
West Ham captain Bowen told Sky Sports: “It took a while. We know we haven’t been good enough at home and we wanted to change that.
“Sometimes you think your luck is against you and that will never change, but we stuck with it. I don’t think we did anything different in terms of preparation. It’s us as players who understand the situation we are in and want to change that.
“Different things worked against us, set pieces worked against us and our goal defense. This time we finally deserved the victory.”
Hammers hero Potts: ‘We stayed together’
Midfielder Freddie Potts arrived for his first start for the Hammers and was hugely impressive. The 22-year-old said the players had stuck together during a difficult period and the comeback victory had proven the team’s character.
Potts told BBC 5 live: “I wanted to come here and get the win. I didn’t even think about anything with man of the match. Now it’s something to build on – we have a great chance of getting three more points next weekend.
“There’s something about this week – we really came together. We knew when the first goal went in we had to bounce back and show the fans we had character.
“There’s a lot of noise coming from outside, it’s so important that we stay together.”
Nuno: Win must be a platform
Manager Nuno Espirito Santo said winning for the first time as West Ham boss “feels really good” and said he was determined to ensure this was the start of a turnaround in fortunes for the club.
He said: “It feels really good. We are happy and proud of the way we played the match.
“That was the feeling but the boys did an incredible job and the reaction from the team was incredible. We had a lot of moments against us. Fantastic reaction.
“It means a lot to us, but nothing is done. We have a lot of work to do and we will start this week trying to improve.”
Speaking to Match of the Day, he added: “The players realize that to win in the Premier League we have to work very hard.
“We will do it again. Victory makes things easier, there are smiles and the legs are easier.
“We are seeing slight improvements on the ground. We need to create a platform on the ground.”
