After making their supporters wait 248 days for a home victory, West Ham treated them to two in less than a week with an important 3-2 win over relegation rivals Burnley.
In an early season six-pointer, the Hammers went behind through Zian Flemming, but Callum Wilson soon hit back.
Tomas Soucek put Nuno Espirito Santo’s side ahead, before Kyle Walker-Peters added a third.
Former Hammer Josh Cullen netted a late consolation, which ensured that the Clarets remained ahead of their opponents on goal difference.
Daily Mail Sport’s WILL PICKWORTH was at the London Stadium and he has picked out some key talking points from the match.
Wilson proves his worth
For whatever reason, Nuno wasn’t enamoured by Wilson on his arrival in East London.
Across his first three games, Wilson didn’t play a minute – and the West Ham boss even preferred rookie forward Callum Marshall or no striker at all.
But after starting against Newcastle and again today, Wilson has proved his worth.
He may not be the player he once was, but the 33-year-old offers so much to this team.
His presence provides the Hammers with a focal point and helps to get the best out of Crysencio Summerville and Jarrod Bowen, although the latter was slightly off colour here.
Wilson’s finish after good work from Summerville was typical of a man with 90 Premier League goals, and if West Ham are to push away from trouble, the former Newcastle man will have a big role to play.
West Ham find new mentality
West Ham had started the game brightly but were lacking that final quality until Flemming pounced on some poor defending to head home.
Instead of crumbling as has been the case so many times this season, most notably here against Chelsea and Tottenham, the Hammers responded well.
The comeback victory against Newcastle last week was the first time in 540 days that they had won a Premier League match like that, and after Wilson’s equaliser, the hosts always looked the likeliest to score.
As ever it was the reliable Soucek who stepped up before Walker-Peters added the cherry on top of the cake.
‘We made two good wins and there is no better feeling going into the international break,’ Nuno said post-match. ‘Let’s enjoy the break and improve for next time.’
Burnley’s away day woes
Burnley’s season will be defined by what happens at Turf Moor, yet if Scott Parker’s side are to stay up, their away record could do with an improvement.
This defeat made it three points from six away games, with that sole win coming at crisis club Wolves. After their opener here, the Clarets failed to offer much going forward until it was too late and didn’t build on a strong start.
‘I thought we were exceptional at the start, got our noses in front with a well-worked goal and then we played the game West Ham wanted us to play,’ Parker bemoaned.
‘We’ve fallen short in moments of concentration and that has cost us the game. This is a big man league and we need to learn from that quickly. We’re here to win and survive. It feels like a massive opportunity missed.’
