Nuno laments West Ham's wasted chances after late penalty miss against QPR

Nuno Espirito Santo rued West Ham's missed chances as a late penalty save denied them the chance to go top of the Championship.

West Ham came from behind to earn a 1-1 draw with QPR at London Stadium on Friday.

A slow West Ham start was punished in the 18th minute as QPR were awarded a controversial penalty; Tomas Soucek – making his first appearance of the season – gave the ball away and recovered possession just outside the box, but the referee awarded a spot-kick.

Nicolas Madsen coolly guided his penalty into the bottom-right corner, sending Mads Hermansen the wrong way.

West Ham got their equaliser in the 70th minute, with Jarrod Bowen scoring on the rebound after his initial shot was blocked.

And he had the chance to snatch all three points at the death after Amadou Mbengue tugged back Pablo, but Charles got down sharply to push Bowen's penalty away before hopping up to tip Arne Engels' follow-up header against the post.

West Ham would have leapfrogged Swansea City to the top of the Championship with a win but will now be looking over their shoulders during the rest of the weekend's action.

"We started well, but the first half was not good; the second half was better. We had chances to win the game," Nuno told Sky Sports.

"We expect much more; we have the quality to do much better.

"QPR are a good side, well-organised, good players, but everyone who saw the game will think there was one team who deserved to win the game.

"Two points got away; let's try to perform better and get a better result."

On Bowen's penalty miss, he added: "Credit to the keeper; it was two incredible saves."

Soucek, playing for the first time since recovering from an ankle injury sustained at the World Cup, was seen with a look of disbelief on his face after the QPR penalty was awarded.

And in his post-match interview, he revealed the referee admitted he had made the wrong decision.

"It's tough to take; I am disappointed," Soucek told Sky Sports. "I was so happy I won the challenge; from my perspective, it's a massive mistake.

"I saw it [afterwards] inside, and it's even worse than I thought, but I can't change that.

"I asked to speak to [the referee], but he wouldn't speak – after the game, he told me he was wrong."

Charles impressed for QPR, having the second-most touches (55) and making four saves, helping the team earn a point that moved them up to fifth in the table.

"It's just a blur," he said. "I work on it every day, and it paid off at the end of the day, and I'm just happy to get the point.

"I'm on a bit of a roll at the minute, but it can change at any point, so I have to stay focused."