West Ham United vs Newcastle United. Premier League.
London StadiumAttendance62,470.
Match report and free match highlights as West Ham's defensive calamities were seized upon by relentless Toon; Callum Wilson and Joelinton scored twice while Alexander Isak also found the net
Thursday 6 April 2023 08:28, UK
Newcastle increased their stranglehold on a top-four finish with a 5-1 win over a hapless West Ham, who completely imploded at the London Stadium.
Callum Wilson, who was selected ahead of Alexander Isak, headed home after just five minutes before Joelinton doubled the advantage when VAR stepped in to overturn a wrongly raised flag for offside.
West Ham threatened to make a game of it when Kurt Zouma reduced the deficit before half-time but a horrendous mistake from Nayef Aguerd when playing out from the back presented Wilson with an easy tap-in for 3-1. Lukasz Fabianski kept the score down in the second half with some superb stops but was majorly at fault for Newcastle's fourth, misjudging a long ball outside his box and Isak chipped home into an empty net before Joelinton completed the rout.
Not that many West Ham fans saw that goal - they had long made their way for the exits as the few that remained booed boss David Moyes as he walked back down the tunnel at full-time.
When asked about the mass exodus in the home end for the final stages of the game, Moyes told Sky Sports: "I might have walked out as well tonight. I know how it works. But sometimes when it's not so good, that's when you stand up and be a true supporter as well. We had some great results here last year in the league and Europe, but sometimes when things aren't going so well you need everybody behind you. I thought the crowd at the start of the game tonight was fantastic, so I've got no qualms with them leaving with a result like that tonight.
"I've got no doubt they [the board] are behind me. I'm confident in the way we work and what they think. But if you're a manager and you lose badly like I did tonight then you're always in jeopardy. I understand that."
The win keeps Newcastle in third place in the Premier League, three points clear of Tottenham in fifth with a game in hand. Meanwhile, West Ham remain sat precariously above the relegation zone but only on goal difference as the pressure increases on Moyes.
It was hard to know which team was chasing Champions League football in the early stages as West Ham struck a post inside 30 seconds when Jarrod Bowen's cross was turned towards his own goal by Bruno Guimaraes.
But for all their positive play West Ham found themselves behind on five minutes with Newcastle scoring with their first attack. Allan Saint-Maximin provided the quality from the right and Wilson was left with yards of space in the middle, heading home from 12 yards.
Newcastle double their advantage nine minutes later. The West Ham offside trap was caught out by Fabian Schar who played a clever ball over the top for Joelinton to race through and finish past Fabianski. The offside flag went up, but it was clear from the replay that Joelinton was at least two yards onside and VAR corrected the wrong on-field decision.
Considering their relegation predicament, West Ham and their crowd could have crumbled but they stuck together and kept on probing. That endeavour was rewarded when Zouma rose highest in front of a flapping Nick Pope to bullet a header home and restore belief of a comeback.
It was all set for West Ham to put pressure on Newcastle after the break but the home side shot themselves in the foot within a minute of the restart. Aguerd - the match winner from Sunday against Southampton - took too much time playing out from the back and Jacob Murphy seized upon him before squaring one to Wilson, who could not miss.
Murphy and then Saint-Maximin took advantage of West Ham's desire to press higher and caused chaos on the counter-attack. However, both players were denied by spectacular saves from Fabianksi, who then went and blotted his copybook by handing Isak the fourth goal with eight minutes to play in a half of football where the Hammers only had one shot at goal.
A truly dismal night for the Hammers was summed up in injury time when Joelinton added a fifth.
Sky Sports' Lewis Jones at The London Stadium:
"David Moyes is not used to getting thrashed. His teams are built upon defensive structure and being hard to beat. It's therefore a worrying trait that his West Ham team can throw the towel in when things become tough. It happened in the 4-0 defeat at Brighton and it certainly happened in this one. Hardly an ideal mentality for a team amid a relegation fight.
"Yes, Newcastle were at times ruthless on the counter-attack in the second half, but such lack of intensity and belief in the Hammers ranks does not paint the picture of a happy camp that are all pulling in the same direction. Despite the game being there for them to chase, West Ham had just one shot in the second half. Newcastle had 10.
"Moyes' decision to go like-for-like with his changes instead of seeing if Michail Antonio and Danny Ings have the chemistry to play together was a baffling move for a manager with so much experience. Maybe it's time for a different direction to spark this talented yet underperforming squad into life."
West Ham captain Declan Rice speaking to Sky Sports: "Really tough one to take. Five goals that at any level you can't concede - not good enough. When you play for this badge, what the fans want is desire and hard work. It was a weird one because even though we went 2-0 down we were still pushing. We felt the fans behind us. We got the goal and there was a real belief at half-time, but the start of the second half really killed things off.
"The effort was there. When you're five goals down it's really tough to keep going mentally, but you have to. In football anything can happen, and you always have to keep pushing. The game felt really stretched when we were 2-0 down. But the five goals we conceded, that's not what West Ham's built on. I don't think we've conceded five worse goals as a team since I've played for West Ham."
Newcastle boss Eddie Howe: "It was a difficult game. I thought the high of Sunday to come here was a tough test psychologically. We weren't at our very best but we were clinical today, which we probably haven't been like for a while. It's great to see us score goals and make the scoreline look comfortable, but I don't think it was.
"It's great to see because it's something we haven't been. If we can add that to our game then we'll be an even stronger team. I'm really pleased with the goals and really pleased with the goalscorers. Great day for us."
West Ham have a London derby at Craven Cottage next up at 3pm on Saturday against Fulham. Newcastle are also in west London, taking on Brentford, also at 3pm.
April 8: Fulham (A) - Premier League, kick-off 3pm
April 13: Gent (A) - Europa Conference League quarter-finals, first leg, kick-off 5.45pm
April 16: Arsenal (H) - Premier League, kick-off 2pm, live on Sky Sports
April 20: Gent (H) - Europa Conference League quarter-finals, second leg, kick-off 8pm
April 23: Bournemouth (A) - Premier League, kick-off 2pm
April 26: Liverpool (H) - Premier League, kick-off 7.45pm
April 29: Crystal Palace (A) - Premier League, kick-off 12.30pm
May 3: Man City (A) - Premier League, kick-off 8pm, live on Sky Sports
May 7: Man Utd (H) - Premier League, kick-off 7pm
May 13: Brentford (A) - Premier League, kick-off 3pm
May 20: Leeds (H) - Premier League, kick-off 3pm
May 28: Leicester City (A) - Premier League, kick-off 4.30pm
April 8: Brentford (A) - Premier League, kick-off 3pm
April 15: Aston Villa (A) - Premier League, kick-off 12.30pm
April 23: Tottenham (H) - Premier League, kick-off 2pm, live on Sky Sports
April 27: Everton (A) - Premier League, kick-off 7.45pm
April 30: Southampton (H) - Premier League, kick-off 2pm
May 7: Arsenal (H) - Premier League, kick-off 4.30pm, live on Sky Sports
May 13: Leeds (A) - Premier League, kick-off 3pm
May 20: Leicester (H) - Premier League, kick-off 3pm
May 28: Chelsea (A) - Premier League, kick-off 4.30pm
