West Ham United's Championship campaign took another damaging blow on Saturday as they fell to a 3-0 defeat against West Brom at the London Stadium, leaving manager Nuno Espirito Santo increasingly isolated — and fans loudly questioning whether he should remain in the job.

The chants of "sacked in the morning" rang out from the West Ham supporters late in the game, with Nuno a solitary presence on the edge of his technical area during four added minutes of misery. One supporter, making their way past the press tribunes, summed up the mood bluntly: "You only need to write two things: West Ham are (bad) and he needs to go."

A Halloween horror show

The timing of the result — on Halloween — seemed fitting, as the Hammers produced a display that had all the hallmarks of the season: conceding too easily, spurning chances at the other end, and sliding to eighth in the Championship table. It was the third time in four home games across all competitions that West Ham had been beaten.

Nuno, characteristically defiant in his post-match remarks, was asked directly whether his position was under threat. "I am always under pressure. Every day," he replied.

Yet the frustration written across his face tells a different story. Nuno is not the one losing his man in the box, nor is he the one miscontrolling a clearance under his own crossbar to gift the opposition a decisive goal. The problems on the pitch belong to his players — but the accountability, inevitably, lands at his door.

Conceding first — again

The defining theme of West Ham's season has become their alarming habit of falling behind. They have now conceded the opening goal in 10 of their 16 competitive matches this campaign. Albion's opener on Saturday was the fourth goal West Ham have let in inside the first 20 minutes across their last three home league games — a stretch in which they have not scored a single first-half goal of their own.

Nuno had held a specific meeting with his squad to address this very issue in the days leading up to the West Brom fixture. It made no discernible difference. Despite winning a corner within 16 seconds of kick-off — with Mohamadou Kante hooking a bouncing effort over the bar — the hosts never found their footing. Isaac Price, Jimmy-Jay Morgan, and Felix Horn Myhre were the standout performers on the day, but they wore the away colours.

"It is very concerning that we are conceding the first goal on a regular basis," Nuno acknowledged. "The message is totally the other way around — the idea is to start the game on the front foot. The first moment West Brom get an offensive situation they score. We have to improve on defence and try to score first."

Defensive absences felt

The absence of Konstantinos Mavropanos was felt across both penalty areas. The 18-year-old Airidas Golambeckis deputised alongside the far more experienced Max Kilman and Morato, enduring a difficult afternoon. Six goals conceded in two home matches underlines how costly Mavropanos's absence has been.

There is, however, a sliver of hope. Nuno suggested the Greek defender could be fit in time for Wednesday's away fixture at Cardiff City, having picked up a knee problem in the defeat to Southampton. "He is a very important player for us. He is improving, we are positive," the manager said.

Back-to-back home defeats to Southampton and West Brom have allowed both clubs to pull clear of West Ham in the table. "It is very costly for us," Nuno admitted. "We have a clear objective in mind. Every result we do not achieve, we get further away from our objective. It is very difficult." Whether he is still in position to see that objective through is now the question hanging over the London Stadium.