West Ham United’s 0-0 draw with Crystal Palace on Monday night meant Wolverhampton Wanderers were relegated from the Premier League. Rob Edwards’ side became the first team to be knocked out of English football’s top tier this season, having picked up just 17 points so far this season.
Wolves have only won three league games all season and have been sitting at the bottom of the table all season. And the uneventful stalemate between West Ham and Palace at Selhurst Park officially ended their eight-year spell in the Premier League. The West Midlands club were promoted to the top flight in 2018 under manager Nuno Espirito Santo. It is therefore ironic that the Portuguese were duly sent off after the Hammers team had secured a point in south London.
The club then turned to former Middlesbrough manager Rob Edwards to replace the Portuguese. Wolves enjoyed a bit of a resurgence earlier this year, with impressive wins against Aston Villa and Liverpool, and a draw at home to league leaders Arsenal.
The West Midlands side have picked up 15 of their 17 points since Edwards took over. However, any faint hopes of a miraculous escape were all but extinguished with a 4-0 defeat away to West Ham earlier this month.
And a convincing 3-0 defeat at Leeds on Saturday ensured that West Ham’s one point against Palace on Monday would be enough to seal their fate. Edwards urged the Wolves team not to whine and end the season before relegation is mathematically confirmed.
Speaking after the Leeds defeat, he said: “Results can’t always be guaranteed but at the end of the day that’s what everyone wants so we have to work hard and get results. We know we have to work hard and win and we have to get results.”
“There were a lot of duels against Leeds. The players were working hard, running and fighting, because Leeds are really good at that. So you can’t question that, but that’s the bare minimum we did.
“We need to strive to achieve results between now and the end of the season, make some achievements there, and gain some unity for next season.”
