Newcastle dent Hammers’ hopes, Sheffield relegated

West Ham’s bid for a place in next season’s Champions League suffered a setback as Joe Willock’s late winner capped a thrilling 3-2 win for Newcastle as Sheffield United’s relegation from the Premier League was confirmed after a 1-0 defeat at Wolves on Saturday.

Steve Bruce’s side had squandered a two-goal lead in the closing stages at St James’ Park, but Willock came off the bench to snatch a priceless winner.

The Magpies are now nine points clear of the relegation zone with just six games remaining in a turbulent season on Tyneside.

Newcastle had taken control in the first-half thanks to Issa Diop’s own goal and a blunder from West Ham keeper Lukasz Fabianski for Joelinton’s strike.

West Ham also lost a man in the aftermath of the opening goal as defender Craig Dawson was sent off for two bookings.

But the Hammers set up a tense finale when Diop got one back before Jesse Lingard equalised with a penalty 10 minutes from full-time.

On-loan Arsenal midfielder Willock settled a pulsating encounter with his thunderous header to take Newcastle to the brink of survival.

Staying up would be an impressive achievement for Bruce, who has battled with dressing room rifts and distracting takeover talk.

“I’m not going to take anything for granted. I’ve always said it’s the accumulation of points, and 35, in my opinion, is not enough, so you won’t get me jumping and hollering at the moment,” Bruce said.

“We’ve still got six games to play. Can we beat last year’s points tally of 44? We’ll try our utmost.”

The defeat was a big blow for West Ham as they chase an unexpected place in next season’s Champions League.

David Moyes’ side remain fourth, but Chelsea are just one point behind with a game in hand, while fifthplaced Liverpool would go above the Hammers if they beat Leeds on Monday.

“I wouldn’t say it was a chance lost, it was an opportunity for us to pick up three points,” Moyes said.

“We like talking about the Champions League, we love the sound of that when everybody says it, but we’re realistic.”

Photo: Sky sport Safe place… Newcastle moved closer to Premier League survival after Joe Willock’s late goal capped a thrilling 3-2 win against 10-man West Ham that dented the visitors’ bid for a top four finish in the Premier League.