Wolverhampton Wanderers moved 12 points clear of the Premier League relegation zone with a 1-0 win over West Ham United
Jorgen Strand Larsen was the hero as Wolverhampton Wanderers moved 12 points clear of the Premier League relegation zone with a 1-0 win over West Ham United.
Strand Larsen’s 10th league goal of the season was enough for Wolves to seal back-to-back wins, having beaten Southampton before the international break.
The Norway forward, who was absent during that break with a hand injury, marked his return to action with the decisive strike midway through the first half.
West Ham’s Niclas Fullkrug hit the bar, while Tomas Soucek fired wide from close range late on, but the Hammers generally struggled to mount a sustained attacking threat, as they suffered their fourth defeat in seven away matches in all competitions.
Vitor Pereira’s Wolves side remain 17th but pulled further clear of the bottom three and five points behind the Hammers, who are a place above them.
How the match unfolded
Both sides went close to scoring in the opening 16 minutes. Matt Doherty denied Evan Ferguson an almost certain tap-in from inside the six-yard box, while Alphonse Areola pushed away Toti’s header at the other end.
However, Wolves went ahead in the 21st minute when the ball broke kindly on the edge of the area for Strand Larsen, whose shot took a slight deflection off former Wolves defender Maximilian Kilman before beating Areola.
Strand Larsen was involved again as the hosts almost doubled their lead five minutes later. The Norwegian was slipped in by Joao Gomes, but Marshall Munetsi could only rattle the crossbar after running onto the loose ball.
It was not until the 78th minute that West Ham went close to an equaliser. The returning Fullkrug’s looping header clipped the crossbar, while Soucek fired wide with only a sprawling Jose Sa to beat in the 89th minute.
Although Munetsi missed another chance to put the game to bed in stoppage time, Wolves held out to move a step closer to securing their Premier League place.
Strand Larsen doubles up in Cunha absence
Wolves had pulled away from immediate danger after collecting 10 points from their last six Premier League matches.
Nevertheless, they would have been wary, having lost on three of their five most recent outings at Molineux.
Matheus Cunha watched on from the stands as he continued to serve his four-match suspension, but Strand Larsen stepped up in his absence with a fine strike taking his league tally for the season into double figures.
Wolves are strong when they take the lead, avoiding defeat in each of their last seven matches when scoring first prior to this game, and they never looked in danger of seeing that streak end, with West Ham struggling to create many opportunities.
With 18th-place Ipswich Town next up for them on Saturday, there was potential for Pereira’s side to be dragged back into the relegation battle had results not gone their way this week.
Yet, come this weekend, they could move 15 points clear of the bottom three with seven matches remaining – thus, within touching distance of ensuring an eighth successive season in the Premier League.
Toothless Hammers’ struggles on travels continue
West Ham’s previous six away Premier League matches had yielded just one victory and three defeats.
Yet a meeting with Wolves, who they have enjoyed success against in recent times, should have buoyed them, and they had a great opening early on.
Ferguson arguably should have put them ahead when he was found by Jarrod Bowen in the six-yard box, but he could not make clean contact.
That missed opportunity proved costly, with Strand Larsen opening the scoring less than 10 minutes later.
The Hammers were always going to face an uphill battle from that point, having failed to win this season when conceding first. In addition, they have struggled for goals since Potter took charge in January, a worrying trend.
In an attempt to buck that trend, the West Ham head coach shuffled his pack by making three changes at the break – among them, the return of Fullkrug after three months out.
However, it took over half an hour for the Hammers to threaten. Fullkrug almost enjoyed an ideal comeback, but Soucek failed to score when put clear on goal by the German.
West Ham are unlikely to be dragged back into the relegation battle with a 17-point cushion between them and Ipswich, but Potter will want his side to bounce back and finish the season as strongly as possible.
Club reports
Wolves report | West Ham report
Match officials
Referee: Tony Harrington. Assistants: Scott Ledger, Sian Massey-Ellis. Fourth official: David Webb. VAR: Stuart Attwell. Assistant VAR: Richard West.
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