West Ham 3 Wolves 0
David Moyes’ side were looking to continue their good form as they welcomed Wolves to the capital. The Hammers had won seven of their last nine games in all competitions and were hoping to continue that sequence into this busy festive schedule.
Wolves threatened for the first time through the in-form Cunha but the hosts kept him out at the expense of a corner. The cross found ex-Hammer Craig Dawson who couldn’t work the keeper with his header on this occasion.
Lucas Paqueta did well to bring the ball out and immediately spotted the run of Kudus with a fantastic pass. He cut inside, onto his left-foot, and drilled a shot from outside the box to beat Bentley and give The Hammers the lead.
Gary O’Neil’s side then dispossessed West Ham in their own half and Cunha shot from distance. His effort was heading into the bottom corner and needed Fabianski to get down to make a good save to keep his side ahead.
Credit: @WestHam
The visitors were not giving up and looked to get back into the game but this was where Moyes’ side seemed most dangerous. Paqueta picked out Kudus again and it ended in the same outcome as the Ghanaian tucked it home to double the hosts’ lead.
Paqueta and Kudus seem to be really bonding and it seems like one of those special partnerships where they know each other’s moves without even needing to look. A bit like Ant and Dec but without the boozing and cruising.
The Hammers almost made it three before the interval when Bowen turned and shot but he was frustrated to see his effort rebound off the inside of the post and go out for a goal kick on the other side of the goal. Physics defying effort.
O’Neil’s side managed to find a way back into the game when Bellegarde did well down the left. He found Hwang, who laid it off to Semedo, squaring it for Sarabia to tuck home. It looked as though the visitors had got themselves back into this.
VAR took an absolute age to review the goal and eventually decided that the Wolves attacker was slightly offside. It infuriated Gary O’Neil, who felt that the decision was wrong. The manager had to be careful as he had been booked in the first half.
Wolves continued to ask questions of the West Ham defence and Cunha went all solo for an effort but his drilled shot just went over the bar with a slight touch from the fingertips of Fabianski. The Hammers’ keeper did well to protect their lead.
Credit: @WestHam
Jarrod Bowen then played a neat one-two with Paqueta and sprinted through on goal from the halfway line. From a tight angle, he squeezed his right-footed shoot into the bottom corner to put the icing on the cake for David Moyes.
It was a solid victory but the Wolves’ manager was not happy with any of the goals his side conceded. He felt they had gifted West Ham each one of them. The Hammers counter-attacking play was clinical and they really punished the visitors and deserved their rewards.
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