West Ham bid for top-4 finish suffers setback
West Ham United’s top-four hopes were dealt a big blow as Joe Willock’s late header earned Newcastle United a 3-2 win in a seesaw clash yesterday — a result that put the hosts within sight of Premier League safety.
The London club capitulated in the first half with an Issa Diop own goal and a Lukasz Fabianski blunder that allowed Joelinton to give Newcastle a 2-0 lead at the interval, while West Ham also had Craig Dawson sent off.
But the second half saw the London side produce a stunning revival.
Diop scored at the right end to give West Ham hope in the 73rd minute, and Jesse Lingard then converted a penalty to make it 2-2 with little under 10 minutes remaining.
But there was a final cruel twist for the visitors as Newcastle substitute Joe Willock headed home a late winner.
West Ham could not respond again, and they remain in fourth place with 55 points from 32 games, one point above Chelsea who have a game in hand.
Newcastle moved nine points clear of third-from-bottom Fulham.
Tottenham face anxious wait
Tottenham Hotspur face an anxious wait to discover the severity of Harry Kane’s ankle injury after he hobbled off after scoring twice in a 2-2 Premier League draw away to Everton on Friday.
Kane moved clear at the top in the race for the Premier League Golden Boot award as his brace moved him to 21 for the season.
But with Tottenham’s League Cup final against Manchester City only nine days away, the sight of him limping off in stoppage time was a huge concern.
“I don’t really know much. I don’t have much to say. I don’t want to be stupidly optimistic. At the moment I
don’t know. I believe tomorrow we will have more detail,” Tottenham manager Jose Mourinho said of Kane’s injury.
Kane scored his goals either side of a brace for Gylfi Sigurdsson in a draw that did little for either side’s hopes of making a late charge for the top four.
Norwich promoted to top flight
Norwich City were promoted to the Premier League without kicking a ball yesterday as draws for Swansea and Brentford sent the Championship leaders back into the top-flight.
Daniel Farke’s side have dominated the second tier with 27 wins from their 41 games so far, earning an immediate return to the Premier League following last season’s relegation.
The Canaries’ promotion was guaranteed after third-placed Swansea were held to a 2-2 draw by bottom of the table Wycombe, while fourth-placed Brentford drew 0-0 with Millwall. AFP/REUTERS
RESULTS
Newcastle 3 (Diop 36-og, Joelinton 41, Willock 83) West Ham 2 (Diop 73, Lingard 80-pen)