Wolves moved out of the relegation zone for the first time in three months and dumped West Ham into the bottom three to increase the pressure on manager David Moyes.
Daniel Podens scored the only goal when he headed home Matthies Nunes’ cross three minutes after half-time.
Despite a £160m summer spending spree, West Ham have collected one point from their last seven games ahead of next Saturday’s meeting with Moyes’ old club and fellow underachievers Everton at the London Stadium.
Moyes went on to applaud the supporters at the end but the reaction from many was negative.
In contrast, Wolves manager Julen Lopetegui punched the air in celebration at the final whistle.
The former Real Madrid and Spain boss is now responsible for half of Wolves’ four league wins this season and Wolves’ most convincing victory had Raul Jimenez’s stoppage-time effort not been ruled out for offside. would have done
Moyes’ men badly underperforming
Defending his record at West Ham, Moyes rightly pointed to the previous two-and-a-half seasons, when he saved the club from relegation, then through their league position in consecutive seasons for the first time in their history. Obtained European qualification. .
The problem for Moyes is that many of the little things West Ham have been getting right over the past two years are not quite working for them this season.
Jarrod Bowen was a standout performer last season and Thomas Souske the year before that. Currently, they are ineffective from an offensive standpoint.
Bowen raced up the byline towards the end of the first half and Sucek made a trade mark in the box, but the end result was an easy catch for Wolves keeper Jose Sa.
By the end of October last season, Michael Antonio had scored seven goals for West Ham. Since then, he has scored 11 runs in 62 games. Although he tried to unsettle Wolves’ central defensive pairing of Nathan Collins and Maximilian Kilman, he never quite managed it.
That said, Benerhama made less than a half save, but with Antonio joined in a two-man frontline with fellow substitute Gianluca Schemica many Hammers fans have been calling for, it wasn’t until the final five minutes that West Ham created some attacking momentum.
Escamaca headed the chance after an away period but there appeared to be a lack of belief among the West Ham players which was surely shared by many fans at the end.
Wolves on the march under Lopetegui
Lopetegui isn’t putting his reputation on the line in a Premier League relegation battle without the promise of adding some firepower to his current squad.
Two new signings were added on Saturday, with a third promising to come in the form of PSG winger Pablo Sarabia.
The late introduction of Mario Lemina for his debut gave Wolves stability in central midfield, but by then Lopetegui’s first transfer window signing, Atletico Madrid forward MatthÃs Cunha, had already made an impressive contribution.
Cunha may not have scored but Wolves are crying out for an effective forward with the Brazilian’s pace.
By moving into wide areas, Cunha allowed the talented Wolves midfielders to occupy dangerous positions centrally. Captain Ruben Neves threatened on a couple of occasions before the break and then also hit the bar, with Wolves on top by then.
Lopetegui will obviously move on, on and off the field but, after a few months, Molineux is alive with hope again.
