West Ham's return to the Championship has stumbled badly out of the blocks, and manager Nuno Espirito Santo didn't mince his words after a 2-1 home defeat to Charlton Athletic left the Hammers without a win from their opening two matches.

Goals from Lloyd Jones and Tyreece Campbell secured Charlton's second successive victory and maintained their 100% start to the 2026-27 campaign, while West Ham were left ruing a combination of defensive lapses and profligate finishing at the London Stadium.

Joel Piroe did net his first goal in West Ham colours to pull one back, offering a glimmer of hope for the home side. However, when the chance to salvage a dramatic last-gasp equaliser arrived via a penalty — awarded after Conor Coventry's handball in the box — Valentin Castellanos could only rattle the woodwork, summing up a deeply frustrating afternoon.

Domination Without Reward

The statistics paint a picture of a side that controlled the match but failed where it mattered most. West Ham enjoyed 77.6% possession and attempted 25 shots, accumulating a commanding 3.0 expected goals (xG). They fashioned four Opta-defined 'big' chances compared to Charlton's zero.

By contrast, Charlton managed just seven shots — five on target — and registered a mere 0.6 xG. Yet it was the visitors who walked away with all three points, a reality that left Nuno searching for answers.

'We Failed the Fans'

Speaking to West Ham TV after the match, a visibly frustrated Nuno took responsibility and offered a candid assessment of his side's shortcomings in both penalty areas.

"I'm disappointed. It's not about the way we played; it's about the situations in the box," the Portuguese manager said. "We didn't defend the throw-in properly [that led to Jones' opening goal]; we didn't create enough in the offensive box."

"We created a lot of situations, but this is football, and we have to be more precise in the boxes. I didn't know exactly the number of shots [we had], but we created a lot of situations but weren't able to take them."

He added: "It's disappointing, but it's us who failed. It was us. We failed the fans. We should apologise."

Championship Takes Shape

The defeat leaves West Ham sitting 17th in the early Championship table after two matches, having drawn their opener against Burnley before this setback against Charlton.

Meanwhile, Wolves have adapted to the second tier with far greater ease, securing their first win with a 3-1 thumping of Preston North End. Portsmouth and Southampton also recorded 3-1 victories over Lincoln City and Stoke City respectively.

At the summit, Millwall top the table with a perfect record after dispatching 10-man Norwich City 3-0, as they look to go one better than last season's play-off disappointment.