Fulham emerged victorious from a tense London derby, defeating West Ham 1-0 at the London Stadium thanks to a late strike from Raul Jimenez. The win moves Fulham into the top half of the Premier League table, while West Ham remains mired in the relegation zone.
The decisive moment came in the 85th minute when West Ham left-back Ollie Scarles made a costly error. Harry Wilson capitalized on the mistake, crossing the ball for Jimenez to head home the winning goal. The 20-year-old Scarles was visibly distressed at the final whistle, but West Ham manager Nuno Espirito Santo expressed his support for the young player.
"We are all disappointed and sad, but we stick together," Espirito Santo said. "He has our total confidence and support. Mistakes are part of the game."
West Ham's woes were compounded by a series of missed opportunities. Jarrod Bowen, Callum Wilson, and Soungoutou Magassa all squandered chances to put the Hammers ahead, extending their winless run to seven matches. The defeat was West Ham's 11th at home in the Premier League this year, equaling their record from 1967.
Fulham, on the other hand, secured their third consecutive league victory, a feat they last achieved in January 2023. Manager Marco Silva praised his team's ambition and resilience.
"Three wins in a row in the Premier League is very difficult to achieve, so the players deserve all the credit," Silva said.
The result leaves West Ham in the drop zone, five points from safety. Their relegation fears were further heightened by chants from Fulham fans, who taunted the Hammers with references to a potential return to the Championship.
West Ham had the chance to move two points behind 17th-placed Nottingham Forest before the match, but their poor finishing ensured they remained in the relegation zone. The Hammers have now taken just 13 points from their 18 Premier League games this season, their lowest tally at this stage since the 2010/11 campaign, which ended in relegation.
Both teams fielded unchanged lineups from their previous games, with Scarles and Wilson overcoming knocks to start for West Ham and Fulham, respectively. Despite the defeat, Espirito Santo remains focused on turning around the Hammers' fortunes.
"We can spend hours talking about all the aspects, but basically, when you don't score, the situation that we are in, everything bad happens to us," he said. "We need to focus on how to win a game."
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