West Ham United’s survival hinges on David Moyes once more, as they need the former manager’s Everton side to beat Tottenham on Sunday to have any chance of staying up. A draw would leave them requiring a 12-goal win over Leeds, an improbable margin given their season’s form.
Moyes twice saved the Hammers from relegation, in 2017 and 2020, and delivered their first major trophy in 43 years, the Europa Conference League, in 2023. Yet he was sacked in May 2024 after his pragmatic style lost favour.
Since then, Julen Lopetegui and Graham Potter lasted just months. Current manager Nuno Espírito Santo sparked a recovery in November but a winless run left them seven points adrift. A subsequent upturn lifted them out of the bottom three before three straight defeats brought them to the brink.
Nuno has stuck to his routine this week, saying: “The same approach, the same routine, the same dedication.” He told his players to focus only on their own game, ignoring events elsewhere.
Jarrod Bowen, a symbol of West Ham’s rise under Moyes, was omitted from Thomas Tuchel’s World Cup squad despite recent call-ups. Nuno said: “Jarrod doesn’t have to prove anything. He just has to be himself.”
Defeat on Sunday would confirm relegation with 36 points, the highest total in a decade for a relegated side. Nuno declined to discuss his own future, stating: “Our future is Sunday.”
