LONDON (AP) — West Ham beat fellow strugglers Wolverhampton Wanderers 4-0 on Friday and dropped Tottenham into the Premier League drop zone for the first time this season.
Spurs were two points behind the Hammers before heading to Sunderland on Sunday.
Valentín Castellanos scored twice in three minutes midway through the second half after Konstantinos Mavropanos put the Hammers 1-0 up with a header just before halftime.
Konstantinos completed the scoring seven minutes from time with an acrobatic volley from a corner kick.
Wolves remained at the bottom of the league and was almost certain to be relegated.
Neither side excelled in a forgettable first half but West Ham went in a goal to the good when Mavropanos nodded home a cross from Jarrod Bowen.
Castellanos made it two after 66 minutes thanks to a deliciously cheeky assist from Pablo and then the same player added a third three minutes later with a low shot that may have been aided by a slight deflection.
Konstantinos’ fourth was the icing on the cake for the home side that celebrated its first league win in over a month.
“We are extremely happy,” Hammers coach Nuno Espirito Santo said. “All of us deserve an evening like this, especially our fans. London Stadium was amazing; it was bouncing with energy even in the hard parts when the game was tough.
“I realize there is still a lot of work to be done yet. We made a big step today, which was important for us, but nothing has changed.”
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AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
