Leicester all but waved a white flag in their battle against relegation after a feeble surrender against West Ham.
Tomas Soucek was gifted a goal on his 30th birthday and Jannik Vestergaard scored an own goal as the Foxes slipped to a meek 2-0 defeat.
Ruud van Nistelrooy’s hapless side have now lost 11 of their last 12 matches, the last four by an aggregate score of 12-0.
Back-to-back wins and clean sheets for @WestHam 😤#WHULEI pic.twitter.com/HOUgef3NQi
— Premier League (@premierleague) February 27, 2025
They could have been just two points from safety with a win but never looked remotely like taking advantage of all the other protagonists in the relegation scrap losing this week.
Ten years ago Leicester were seven points adrift when a 2-1 win over West Ham kick-started an unlikely great escape.
Now the gap is still only five, but Nigel Pearson’s side were not defending as badly as the current crop.
West Ham opened the scoring after 20 minutes with their first attack of the match, when Aaron Cresswell found himself on the edge of Leicester’s penalty area.
Vestergaard could have easily got a block on Cresswell’s hopeful shot from 20 yards, but instead he waved it through.
It was helped goalwards by an onside, yet totally unmarked, Mohammed Kudus from close range and was well blocked by Mads Hermansen. It was a fine save, whether the Foxes goalkeeper knew much about it or not, but Leicester’s defenders just stood and admired it as Soucek wandered forward to finish with a simple tap-in.
The defending was even worse when West Ham doubled their lead two minutes before half-time.
Jamie Vardy made a mess of trying to clear James Ward-Prowse’s corner at the near post as he was challenged by Jarrod Bowen.
The Hammers captain was allowed to scurry along the byline before his cross-shot hit Vestergaard’s inside leg and dribbled past Hermansen into the net.
Bowen had scored his 50th Premier League goal in Saturday’s surprise win at Arsenal, but he will have to wait a bit longer for number 51 after it was given as an own goal.
After the break the Foxes mustered a couple of attacks, but to no avail with Vardy’s shot deflected wide and Vestergaard heading straight at another birthday boy, goalkeeper Alphonse Areola.
West Ham’s January loan signing Evan Ferguson was given a 20-minute run-out at the end and had a chance to get off the mark when he was played in by Bowen, but Wout Faes blocked his shot.
The final whistle signalled back-to-back Premier League wins for West Ham for the first time since March, signs that new boss Graham Potter is starting to make his mark.
But they will surely not get an easier victory than this, against a team who appear to have given up completely.
Sarina Wiegman praised her England team after they “kept it simple” in a 5-0 rout of Nations League opponents Belgium at Ashton Gate.First-half goals from Lucy Bronze and Millie Bright underlined England’s control of the contest, and it could have been more but Alessia Russo twice hit the post.Substitute Aggie Beever-Jones scored her maiden Lionesses goal after 67 minutes, with n...
Valerien Ismael insisted he was the man to turn around Blackburn’s fortunes after a 2-0 home defeat to Middlesbrough played out on a night of sustained fan protests against the club’s ownership and his own management.Boro moved into the play-off places with a fifth win in seven as they make a late promotion charge, but it is a very different story for Blackburn who have dropped out of ...
Middlesbrough climbed up to fifth in the Championship with a 2-0 win over beleaguered Blackburn that piled pressure on Valerien Ismael and the club’s hierarchy at a febrile Ewood Park.Against a backdrop of angry fan protests against the Venky’s Group that has owned Rovers since 2010, Boro struck twice in the opening eight minutes to take control.Tommy Conway needed less than 90 seconds...
England comfortably preserved their unbeaten record in this season’s Nations League after a dominant display saw them brush aside Belgium 5-0 at Ashton Gate.First-half goals from Lucy Bronze and Millie Bright underlined England’s control of the contest, and it could have been more but Alessia Russo twice hit the post.Substitute Aggie Beever-Jones scored her first Lionesses goal after 6...
Premier League leaders Liverpool are going to have a busy summer transfer window.The Reds are currently working on new contracts for players like Virgil Van Dijk and Mohamed Salah while also preparing for the departure of right-back Trent Alexander-Arnold.Players like Darwin Nunez and Luis Diaz are also facing an uncertain future at Anfield and could be replaced after this season.The Merseyside cl...
Alejandro Garnacho has dropped a Manchester United transfer hint by putting his £3.9m mansion up for sale after just a year.Garnacho puts £3.9m mansion up for saleCould hint at summer transferWinger nearly left Man Utd in JanuaryWHAT HAPPENED?Garnacho only bought the property in Bowdon last April but is already selling it, suggesting that a departure from United could be on the cards thi...
DEAN HUIJSEN has been warned a dream move to Real Madrid could turn into his worst nightmare.The Bournemouth centre-back is high on the Santiago Bernabeu hitlist after an amazing debut season in England.Dean Huijsen was warned by former coach Juanito that a move to Real Madrid may turn into a nightmareThe Spanish giants are preparing to trigger the £50million release clause on a contract that...
Saudi Pro League's Al-Qadsiyah looking to sign Viktor GyokeresThe Sun has reported that Saudi Pro League newcomers, Al-Qadsiyah, are also in the hunt to sign Gyokeres this summer as they continue to try and challenge Saudi Arabia's big four. The SPL side will have a monetary edge in the race to sign the Swede as they have a bigger bank to offer Sporting a bigger fee up-front, which the Portuguese ...
Ange Postecoglou insisted his controversial cupped ear celebration to Tottenham fans in a 1-0 loss at Chelsea had been misinterpreted on another bad night for the Australian.Spurs slipped to a 16th defeat in the Premier League this season thanks to a 50th-minute header by Enzo Fernandez, but it only told half the story of a typically frenzied London derby.VAR was required to rule out a fine strike...
Chelsea climbed back into the Premier League’s top four as Enzo Fernandez’s header early in the second half earned a 1-0 derby win over Tottenham at Stamford Bridge.Enzo Maresca’s side were under pressure after limping into the international break playing football that had ceased to excite home fans, but they largely had the better of a disappointing Spurs team that failed to tak...
- 1 Reading extend unbeaten League One run to 11 games with win over Peterborough
- 2 Danny Rohl hails Sheffield Wednesday resilience in draw at Cardiff
- 3 Alfie May double sends Birmingham step closer to Championship
- 4 Marcus Rashford scores first Premier League goal for Villa in win at Brighton
- 5 Ryan Lowe and Conor Hourihane felt team deserved more as Wigan and Barnsley draw
- 6 Hollywood superstar Anne Hathaway sends clear message to Bukayo Saka
- 7 Mat Sadler hails Taylor Allen set-piece skills after Walsall snatch draw
- 8 Chris Davies says Alfie May’s goal drought never concerned him
- 9 Football fan 'eats' raw pig's head in ultimate insult
- 10 Marcus Rashford still looking to improve after firing Villa into FA Cup semis