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West Ham 2 Wolves 1: Matchwinner Bowen lifts up Michail Antonio’s shirt in tribute as Hammers ease pressure on Lopetegui
West Ham fans and players paid tribute to Michail Antonio
JULEN LOPETEGUI may well have seen off Gary O’Neil, but could soon be joining him at the job centre.
After last week’s thumping at Everton, O’Neil talked as if he would be gone by the morning and now this is surely it having come out on the wrong side of ‘El Sackico’.
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Jarrod Bowen may have sealed his fate, bagging a winner after Matt Doherty had cancelled out Tomas Soucek’s opener.
Both West Ham’s goalscorers celebrated by paying tribute to Michail Antonio after his horror car crash on Saturday.
The disappointment boiled over within the Wolves squad at full-time as Mario Lemina sparked a row with Bowen by refusing to shake his hand before shoving his own team-mates and a member of the club staff.
The only silver lining for Wolves was that they did not ship four – as they had done in the two before arriving in London.
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Lopetegui, having lasted longer than expected with a stay of execution last week, will hope this can be a turning point.
Though it was not a victory won with free-flowing, buccaneering football.
There was a smart, low, finish from Bowen, but little happened by design and the expectation in the West Ham boardroom is that Lopetegui will not see out the season.
A win over Wolves, now second from bottom, proves little.
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The contest, and the futures of the two managers overseeing it, felt far less significant in the early stages.
Supporters sang Antonio’s name inside the first minute and then all stood to applaud throughout the ninth minute, with the travelling fans and Lopetegui joining in.
West Ham stars pay tribute to Antonio with special shirts after pal's horror crash
The emotion had certainly taken the edge off of a West Ham fanbase who decided to stick with the squad rather than express their frustrations.
There was no collective anger aimed at Lopetegui or the ownership, who had come close to sacking the Spaniard last week but delayed.
It took 20 minutes for the two sides to settle and the focus to shift to the football and what was at stake.
Joao Gomes found space on the edge of the West Ham box to collect a bouncing ball but his shot was straight at Lukasz Fabianski, the Hammers goalkeeper.
Neither side had a firm grasp and were relying on a touch of chance to create something.
Bowen raced in behind to chase a deflected ball and saw his strike saved by Sam Johnstone as frustration spread through the London Stadium.
Wolves fans aimed a dig at former boss Lopetegui, who kept them up before leaving just days before a new season, and some Hammers supporters joined in.
The fate of Wolves each week largely hangs on whether Matheus Cunha is having a good day or not.
He sent a low shot to the corner of the West Ham goal which had Fabianski stretching but hardly troubled.
It turned into an end-to-end affair which exposed exactly why both O’Neil and Lopetegui are not long for their posts.
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The two defences were offering gaping holes, though neither forward line could truly take advantage.
Carlos Soler and Gomes both wasted huge chances, the Wolves man missing a tap in from yards out.
The hosts had a chance to build up a head of steam, but all they could muster was Konstantinos Mavropanos hooking well over the bar.
No one looked confident on the ball or played with any conviction.
The visitors managed to leave Soucek, the most obvious threat at a set piece, completely free at the far post.
He waited for Bowen’s in-swinging corner to drop onto his head and nodded it back across goal, watching it loop into the far post.
Mohammed Kudus then had the ball in the back of the net, but saw it ruled out for offside – the first of two on the night.
O’Neil sent on Goncalo Guedes and Jean-Ricner Bellegarde to try and salvage the game.
The former added life. He should have been awarded a penalty for a shove by Emerson and then helped set up the leveller.
Guedes slipped a ball down the left for Ait-Nouri whose cross was placed bang on the penalty spot, where Doherty arrived sliding and finished first time.
O’Neil barely even celebrated – instead choosing to berate referee John Brooks for not awarding the penalty.
One last parting shot at officials, who have caused him so much grief at Wolves.
His reprieve here did not last long, either.
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After sending a deep free kick into the Wolves box, which they struggled to clear, Bowen moved to the edge of the box, cut inside Guedes and picked out the far corner.
The England man held Antonio’s shirt aloft, in a final reminder of what was more important than which manager left with a smile.
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