West Ham United took another huge step toward the relegation trapdoor with a crushing 3-1 defeat at Newcastle United on Sunday.
It took just 15 minutes for the Hammers to shoot themselves in the foot, with a cheap giveaway from goalkeeper Mads Hermansen pounced upon by Harvey Barnes, who fed Nick Woltemade to score his first Premier League goal in 18 games.
Just four minutes later, the Magpies doubled their lead, with William Osula putting the finishing touch to a superb back-to-front move by Eddie Howe’s men — though his Michael Jackson-inspired celebration left something to be desired.
That prompted a 29th-minute change from Nuno Espirito Santo, who sacrificed centre-back Jean-Clair Todibo for striker Taty Castellanos. But although West Ham improved, it was still Newcastle who scored next, with Osula doubling his tally just after the hour, as Pablo miscontrolled to gift the hosts possession again.
Castellanos quickly provided West Ham with the faintest glimmer of hope, dispatching a stunning volley from a Hermansen punt upfield. However, the goal of the season contender went down as a mere consolation as the Magpies held out, despite some sloppy play at the end.
West Ham stare deeper into the abyss
West Ham had built up so much momentum in this relegation battle that it felt like they were destined to claw themselves out of trouble.
However, the wheels have fallen off at the worst possible moment, with Nuno’s men losing each of their three games following that last-gasp win at home to Everton in late April.
It’s been a familiar tale for West Ham, who simply haven’t scored enough goals and have been so soft at the back, going down 7-1 combined during this three-game slump.
Credit must be given to the West Ham players for sticking to the task on Sunday, and they came close a couple of times at St. James’ Park after Castellanos had provided a glimmer of hope.
However, they’d given themselves an entire mountain range to climb earlier in the match, which you just cannot do in a relegation scrap as desperate as this.
The formula is now simple: given their massively inferior goal difference, West Ham must now hope that Tottenham lose against Chelsea and Everton, while also beating Leeds United on the final day. Otherwise, the 62,500-seater London Stadium will be hosting Championship football next season.
Newcastle enjoy rare feel-good afternoon, but changes are coming
It’s been a pretty miserable season for Newcastle United, and yet, they remain in with a chance of sneaking European qualification.
A lot of other results need to go their way, but this result means a win at Fulham on the final day could see them jump from 11th to as high as eighth, which is enough to secure Uefa Conference League football — even ninth could do that under very complex circumstances.
Regardless of what happens, it very much felt like a transitional afternoon on Sunday.
Kieran Trippier was given a standing ovation as he came off late into his swansong St. James’ Park appearance. Meanwhile, the futures of players like Anthony Gordon, Nick Pope and midfield duo Bruno Guimaraes and Sandro Tonali remain unclear thanks to various transfer and contract activity.
What’s more, Osula netting a brace to extend his excellent form — five goals in his last six appearances and six across his last eight — suggests he could play a far more prominent role next season.
It was a feel-good afternoon on Tyneside, but that’s been an all-too-rare occurrence this season. You get the feeling that this was one last flourish before Eddie Howe completely rings the changes over the summer.