West Ham are on the winning track again. After two games which ended in draws (against Leicester and Newcastle), the Hammers continued their unlucky quest for the Champions League spot and after a minimal win against Wolverhampton Wonderers, they sit at fifth spot, just two points behind Manchester United, who disappointed (again) with a draw against relegation strugglers Watford: West Ham – Wolverhampton 1-0.🗣 “My grandpa came for the first time, this goal is for him. He is 80 in one week.” ❤️Tomas Soucek dedicates the goal he scored today on his birthday to his grandfather who came to watch him play at West Ham for the first time pic.twitter.com/vL5qwGT8oT— Football Daily (@footballdaily) February 27, 2022 In a not so interesting match (and most of Wolves matches are like that), the Hammers came out as clear winners. The home team pressed and created chances, but Wolves were excellent in defense as usual, until they conceded the only goal of the match. And the visitors are one of the most inefficient teams in the Premier League, so they had a really difficult task trying to score the equalizer, and they failed. One of the probable reasons are coach Bruno Lange’s decision to leave out three important first team players Raul Jimenez, Daniel Podence and Joao Moutinho on the bench. Podence and Jimenez came in later, but it was too late.The game started with a support to the people of Ukraine from both teams. Declan Rice led out the West Ham team and as they lined up, he raised an Andriy Yarmolenko shirt, as the stadium screen showed a message of support, which read: “Sending love and prayers to Andriy Yarmolenko and the people of Ukraine”. Wolves were also wearing t-shirts to send an anti-war message. West Ham winger Yarmolenko was given a compassionate leave due to war in his homeland.Three points: ✅COME ON YOU IRONS!!! ⚒#WHUWOL pic.twitter.com/EeV768DGDz— West Ham United (@WestHam) February 27, 2022 The first chance came after half an hour, when Antonio got the ball from Soucek, but his powerful shot was turned around Sa. Even better chance was the one by captain Rice in the 38th minute, but his volley from 25 meters ended up at the left post. West Ham were completely in control of the game, but only had these two long shots, while Wolves had only one, but it was a really good chance in injury time. Hwang has the best opportunity of the game after West Ham cleared only as far as the penalty spot. But his effort was wide of the post. West Ham continued to dominate in the second half as well, and finally the reward came when Antonio assisted to Soucek, who scored for the lead in the 59th minute, celebrating his 27th birthday perfectly. Wolves were forced to attack after that, but were faced with a good West Ham defense and ended up with only a couple of long shot efforts. Not enough for a draw.PREMIER LEAGUE – ROUND 27FridaySouthampton – Norwich 2-0 (1-0)/Adams 36, Romeu 88/SaturdayLeeds United – Tottenham Hotspur 0-4 (0-3)/Doherty 10, Kulusevski 15, Kane 28, Son 86/Man.Utd. – Watford 0-0Brighton – Aston Villa 0-2 (0-1)/Cash 17, Watkins 68/Brentford – Newcastle 0-2 (0-2)/Joelington 33, Willock 44/Crystal Palace – Burnley 1-1 (1-0)/Schlupp 9 – Milivojevic 46 og/Everton – Man.City 0-1 (0-0)/Foden 82/SundayWest Ham – Wolverhampton 1-0 (0-0)/Soucek 59/Arsenal – Liverpool CANCELEDChelsea – Leicester City CANCELED
