West Ham 4-0 Wolves: Hammers produce scintillating display as Tottenham slide into relegation zone | OneFootball

Roberto De Zerbi’s Spurs can respond in Italian’s first game in charge on Saturday

West Ham have had the luxury of low expectations and limited attention in recent months. They looked out of ideas after losing to Nottingham Forest at the start of January, while Tottenham’s season has spiralled so far out of control you can’t help but fix your gaze.

Tonight, though, with the chance to move out of the relegation zone for the first time since November, the rest of the Premier League was watching.

It made for a nervy evening inside the London Stadium, and the Hammers initially struggled to get going as Wolves made the brighter start, with Jean-Ricner Bellegarde carving a route towards goal before flashing the ball across the six-yard box.

Wolves were calm and considered in their play. The hosts, by contrast, were erratic, as El Hadji Malick Diouf’s miscontrolled touch allowed Adam Armstrong to fire over.

Frustration was beginning to build as the Irons toiled. A golden chance in what is a comparatively difficult run-in for the Hammers looked to be escaping them as the game edged towards half-time.

That was until Mavropanos glanced Jarrod Bowen’s recycled corner past Jose Sa to spark a reserved but mightily relieved celebration from Nuno Espirito Santo.

In Bowen, Nuno knows he has a player whose intensity and commitment can pick others up and having assisted the opener, he went off in search of a goal of his own, striking the post with a fierce effort after the break.

West Ham do not need to be pretty from now until the end of the season; they need to be effective, and the way they picked off Wolves’ press twice in the space of as many minutes spoke to the organisation and patience that Nuno has drilled into them. The greatest compliment you can pay this side is that they are a reflection of their manager.

Nuno has never wavered in his belief that he can get this team to buy into what he is trying to build. It has taken moulding, in the transfer window and on the training ground, but finally, West Ham are a team with identity, and they have forged a path to survival.

They took some time to click into gear tonight, but as Castellanos slid the ball past Sa after collecting Pablo Felipe’s flick, West Ham turned on the style - they have not scored four goals in a game since October 2024.

Castellanos quickly added another before Mavropanos powered home on the volley from a corner to give the hosts an unassailable lead.

West Ham have looked capable of beating the drop for a number of months now. Tonight, they proved they could as they put their destiny in their own hands.