"WE’RE NOT DONE": JARROD BOWEN’S DEFIANT MESSAGE AFTER RECORD-BREAKING PERFORMANCE
West Ham United secured a vital 3-1 win over Sunderland, moving within two points of safety thanks to a first-half scoring blitz.
West Ham’s fight to stay in the Premier League isn’t over yet. They gave their survival hopes a real jolt with a lively 3-1 win over Sunderland.
Not long ago, things looked bleak for Nuno Espirito Santo and his team. They were seven points from safety and running out of time. But something’s changed. Back-to-back wins—first at Tottenham, now here—have clawed them within just two points of 17th-place Nottingham Forest. And with Forest heading to Brentford on Sunday, the gap might not grow.
Off the pitch, West Ham’s rescue mission keeps rolling. Argentinian midfielder Guido Rodriguez missed out as he lines up a move to Valencia, and Fulham’s Adama Traore is close to joining. Lucas Paqueta remains out; his future is still up in the air. There was at least a rare sighting of James Ward-Prowse on the bench, back in the fold after a spell out in the cold under Nuno.
Sunderland didn’t have their captain, Granit Xhaka, sidelined with an ankle problem, and they felt it. Still, they started strong. In less than two minutes, Noah Sadiki unleashed a rocket, and Alphonse Areola had to leap to keep it out. But West Ham struck first. In the 14th minute, Jarrod Bowen burned down the right and floated in a perfect cross. Crysencio Summerville, despite being one of the shortest on the field, climbed above Nordi Mukiele and nodded in his third goal in three games.
A few hundred West Ham fans missed all that, still protesting in the stands, but they arrived just in time to see the second. Ollie Scarles was clipped in the box by Trai Hume, and Bowen coolly slotted home the penalty—his first goal of 2026.
Then came a real treat. Right before halftime, Taty Castellanos had a shot blocked, the ball split out to Mateus Fernandes about 30 yards from goal, and he whipped a beauty into the top corner. That one had even the home fans shaking their heads in disbelief.
Sunderland, who’ve struggled on the road despite an impressive return to the top flight, finally got something going after the break. Brian Brobbey headed in Mukiele’s cross, denying Nuno his first clean sheet since taking over in September.
The last few minutes had a bit of everything: Luke O’Nien hit the post for Sunderland, Xhaka seemed to argue with a West Ham supporter from the bench, and Tomas Soucek had a messy fourth goal ruled out.
But none of that spoiled the moment. West Ham picked up a second straight win, and for now, they’ve got a real shot at survival. They’re not done yet—not by a long shot.
SCATHING VERDICT: ANGE POSTECOGLOU CLAIMS TOTTENHAM ARE "NOT A BIG CLUB" TODAY
Ange Postecoglou claims Tottenham "isn't a big club" in a scathing review of their transfer policy following Thomas Frank's sacking.
Ange Postecoglou didn’t mince words about why Tottenham keep falling short. He says the club’s refusal to really compete with the Premier League’s top spenders holds them back, simple as that.
Postecoglou got the boot last June, right after he delivered a Europa League trophy and ended a 17-year wait for silverware. Now his replacement, Thomas Frank, is out too. Tottenham sit 16th in the league, just five points clear of relegation, and they’ve got league leaders Arsenal up next. Not exactly a fun place to be.
After Frank’s sacking, Postecoglou went on The Overlap’s Stick to Football podcast and pretty much called out Tottenham’s whole approach. “If you look at what they spend and how they structure wages, they’re just not a big club,” he said. He saw it firsthand while trying to sign players; Tottenham just weren’t in the race for the big names.
In his first season, Postecoglou managed to get Tottenham up to fifth. But things went downhill. The next year, even with that Europa League win, they slipped to 17th. He’s convinced the club just doesn’t get what it takes to win, you have to take some risks, and they just won’t.
“I felt like the club was saying, ‘We’re one of the big boys,’ but honestly, they’re not,” he said.
Frank was Tottenham’s fifth full-time manager since Mauricio Pochettino left in 2019, even though Pochettino took them to a Champions League final. Fans are frustrated. Tottenham keep missing out on their transfer targets. Frank wanted Morgan Gibbs-White from Nottingham Forest last summer, but that didn’t happen. Arsenal snatched up Eberechi Eze instead.
Postecoglou, who later had a short, rocky stint at Forest himself, thinks Frank might not have realised what he was getting into. “There’s no guarantee with any manager. They’ve had some world-class people in that job and still no real success. Why is that?” he asked. “What’s the real objective here? Did Thomas even know what he was walking into? Who knows?
136-YEAR CURSE: BURNLEY AVOID MATCHING 1890 RECORD WITH A SENSATIONAL COMEBACK CRYSTAL PALACE 3-2 WIN
Burnley escaped a historic 136-year record! Read how Scott Parker’s men scored three in six minutes to stun Crystal Palace 3-2.
Burnley looked finished. Down 2-0 after just half an hour, with Jørgen Strand Larsen scoring his first goals for Crystal Palace, it pretty much felt like Scott Parker’s team were about to tie their old record: 17 top-flight games without a win, a streak that’s haunted them since 1890. For Burnley fans, the past three months have been brutal. Then, out of nowhere, everything flipped in six wild minutes right before halftime.
Hannibal Mejbri pulled one back. Jaidon Anthony levelled it. Then Jefferson Lerma, of all people, knocked in an own goal. Just like that, Burnley snatched only their second away win since promotion. It keeps their survival hopes alive, barely, but Parker knows they’ll need a few more miracles like this to actually stay up.
For Palace, this was a harsh wake-up call. Their big win over Brighton had just snapped a 12-game winless spell, and for a while, it looked like Oliver Glasner’s side were cruising to only their third home victory of the season, something that would’ve eased their relegation fears. But sloppy defending let Burnley right back in.
Burnley’s luck before kickoff didn’t exactly scream “comeback”. Parker had never won a league game in London as an away manager, and the team bus got stuck in traffic, pushing kick-off back by ten minutes. Palace, for their part, hadn’t lost at home to a promoted side since Sunderland thrashed them 4-0 back in 2017.
When Strand Larsen smashed in a gorgeous ball from Adam Wharton and then dived to head in Lerma’s cross after Kyle Walker messed up, it just seemed like Burnley were doomed.
But then Mejbri gave the visitors a lifeline, beating Dean Henderson with a sharp finish. Suddenly, Burnley were level. There was some debate about whether Lesley Ugochukwu handled the ball before setting up Anthony to score, but nobody could argue with the bottom corner finish – no chance for the keeper.
Then came the third: Bashir Humphreys’ header was stopped by Henderson, but Lerma could only turn the rebound into his own net. Palace trudged off at halftime to boos. Glasner sent them back out early, probably after some choice words in the dressing room.
Even with £35 million man Brennan Johnson on the pitch, Palace couldn’t break down Burnley’s defence. Daichi Kamada missed a decent chance, and Martin Dubravka’s save in stoppage time kept out Ismaïla Sarr. In the end, it was Burnley’s small but loud travelling support celebrating. Somehow, their team had pulled off a rare and badly needed win.