The battle for survival at the bottom of the Premier League continued on Saturday afternoon, with West Ham and Tottenham both battling for points after Nottingham Forest’s big win.
Tomas Soucek celebrates after scoring a goal during West Ham vs. Everton (Image: Warren Little)
There are only a few games left for Tottenham. And Saturday afternoon’s dramatic events highlighted why even an improvement in form may not be enough to save late-winner West Ham as they are sentenced to another week in the relegation zone.
Spurs did their part, defeating relegation-bound Wolves 1-0 thanks to an 82nd-minute goal from Joao Parinha. A few minutes after the goal, Everton scored an equalizer against West Ham, forcing Spurs into safety for at least a few minutes.
However, Callum Wilson’s killer move gave West Ham a 2-1 victory. With four games left in the Premier League, Tottenham are left with a two-point lead.
Nottingham Forest beat Sunderland 5-0 on Friday night, with both teams suffering blows before a ball was even kicked. The win leaves Vitor Pereira’s side on 39 points, seven behind Spurs and five behind West Ham.
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Whatever Nottingham Forest’s incredible results lit a fire under either team, it did not initially translate on the pitch. Tottenham lost striker Dominic Solanke to injury in the first half and could not trouble Wolves too much, but neither team finished goalless.
Things went from bad to worse for Spurs shortly after play resumed, with West Ham taking the lead against Everton with a goal from Tomas Soucek.
The midfielder’s header from a corner kick, awarded just after a penalty appeal had been waved off, put Tottenham under further pressure as they looked to salvage points from Molineux.
Then Xavi Simmons was stretchered off with a serious injury, resulting in another devastating afternoon for Tottenham. However, as time ran out, Palinha emerged and propelled Spurs towards a valuable victory.
Despite their win over Wolves, Tottenham remain in the relegation zone (Image: Darren Staples/AFP)
But Wilson had other ideas. His stoppage-time intervention erased Keenan Dewsbury-Hall’s goal that lifted the roof of the London Stadium in the 88th minute. A stark contrast to Molineux.
After the match, Parinha told BBC Sport: “We have four finals (remaining) and we have to do our job. I hope this win changes things and gives us a little bit more motivation. And we’ve been without a win for a long time so I hope that.”
“What we can control now is to do our job until the end of the season and keep the club in the Premier League where it belongs.
“It means a lot to us to keep[Tottenham]in the Premier League, so we will do everything we can until the end of the season.
After several weeks of poor results, Tottenham could at least take solace in the fact that a win kept them in touch with West Ham and, to some extent, Nottingham Forest, even if it wasn’t enough to lift them out of the relegation zone.
Defeat would have been devastating. Instead, Tottenham survive for now.
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