Callum Wilson admitted there will be some soul-searching from Newcastle over the next few days after they started their Premier League campaign with a 4-2 defeat at home to West Ham.
Newcastle’s new number nine opened the scoring after just five minutes to send a St James’ Park crowd in excess of 50,000 into raptures while the Magpies held a 2-1 lead at half-time on a grey Sunday afternoon.
But the Hammers battled back and scored three times in the space of 14 second-half minutes to secure victory on the opening weekend of the season, much to the chagrin of Wilson.
The striker, who took his tally against West Ham to nine goals in 11 career Premier League appearances, believes the entire team need to take collective responsibility for the defensive flaws David Moyes’ side exposed.
“We started the second half slow and could never recover really,” he told NUFC TV. “It’s frustrating to lose the game.
“Ultimately when you do go 2-1 in front at home you expect to hold on to the lead, at least don’t be conceding more than another goal.
“It’s frustrating but we’re all to blame, we’re all a team and we all defend from the front. It’s something to work on and go away and think about together.”
This fixture marked Wilson’s first experience in a black and white shirt in front of a bumper crowd on Tyneside and while he was happy to give the supporters some early cheer, he was disappointed his side came away empty-handed.
“It was an unreal feeling,” he added. “It’s something I’ve been waiting for for so long. It’s always nice to score to put your team in front but it’s disappointing when you do go behind, so it’s a bittersweet day for me.
“Hopefully my goals amount to more points rather than none. To score and then to lose is frustrating.”
West Ham rebounded from an opening day defeat at the London Stadium to Steve Bruce’s side last season to secure a surprise sixth-place finish in the top-flight and guarantee qualification for the Europa League group stage this term.
They may have had a familiar sinking feeling after falling 1-0 and then 2-1 behind, but they rallied superbly.
“I think we’ve started where we want to be and it shows what we’re about,” West Ham forward Jarrod Bowen said on the club’s official website. “To come away and score four goals and start with three points is fantastic.
“Last season we started with a defeat against Newcastle, so it’s great to be at the top straight away rather than having to catch up.”
Around 3,000 West Ham fans made the long trip north for the fixture, and Bowen added: “Look at what it means to them, it’s great to have them back.”
