West Ham United have clinched three consecutive matchups against Wolverhampton Wanderers for the first time in two decades after defeating them 2-1 at the London Stadium, leaving Gary O’Neil’s side still four points adrift of security in the Premier League.
In a contest that set former Wolves manager Julen Lopetegui against his replacement O’Neil – with both individuals whispered to be near dismissal before this fixture – the initial incident of significance occurred nine minutes in when fans began a standing ovation for Michail Antonio, who was involved in a car mishap on Friday. The first attempt on target arrived 12 minutes later, but it was straight at Łukasz Fabiański’s grasp from João Gomes, while at the other end, Sam Johnstone, filling in for the unavailable José Sá, stood firm to deflect Jarrod Bowen’s close-range effort from an angle.
The match was becoming more expansive, with Crysencio Summerville masterfully finding Bowen, who this time was thwarted by the sliding Rayan Aït-Nouri. Both teams must have started to hope that they would break the deadlock, and Gomes was the next to come close, sidefooting wide from Matt Doherty’s precise cross, while soon afterward, Johnstone’s block from Mohammed Kudus’ shot trickled past Tomáš Souček, who was eagerly poised to capitalize.
Lopetegui would have gone in at HT frustrated that the Hammers couldn’t exploit nine first-half corners, but the 10th just after the break bore fruit, with Bowen’s delivery finding the unmarked Souček, who nodded into the far corner. The home side quickly thought they had doubled their lead, only for Kudus to be ruled offside, and not long afterward, O’Neil was enraged that Wolves weren’t granted a penalty when Emerson Palmieri shoved over Gonçalo Guedes. The Portuguese swiftly moved past that moment, however, feeding Aït-Nouri, whose enticing cross was directed in brilliantly by Doherty. West Ham immediately reclaimed their lead though, as Bowen curled beautifully past Johnstone from 15 yards for his career-best sixth PL goal against Wolves, before celebrating by holding up an Antonio shirt in solidarity with his colleague.
The visitors pressed for an equaliser, with Mario Lemina firing straight at Fabiański and another penalty appeal by Wolves dismissed, but they ultimately failed to draw level for a second time. By coincidence, both teams have now allowed 72 goals in the Premier League in 2024 – the joint-worst tally this year – but while West Ham are now nine points clear of the relegation zone, their opponents remain in dire straits.
