“Three points means three beers,” according to Vítor Pereira. The Wolves head coach and fans can enjoy a few righteous pints after his side moved 12 points clear of the relegation zone with a hard-fought victory over West Ham.
Jørgen Strand Larsen scored the only goal to open up a greater gap on the drop zone. It was easy to see what the result meant to Pereira and his staff. They spent the final minutes of injury time demanding more noise from the home supporters to see Wolves over the line. At the final whistle the head coach leapt in the air and on to the pitch to celebrate, while the stands erupted, embracing each one of his players to thank them for their endeavours.
Wolves’ relegation rivals Ipswich and Leicester have a game in hand but will be level on matches by the end of Wednesday after difficult trips to Bournemouth and Manchester City respectively.
If the battle for survival is not finished yet, Wolves could effectively end it at Portman Road on Saturday when they travel to play Ipswich, a game for which Pereira will be banned from the touchline.
It was a fully deserved victory for Wolves but they spent the later stages looking nervous, risking throwing away two valuable points. Niclas Füllkrug hit the bar and Tomas Soucek could only find the side netting when gifted the perfect chance to equalise by Toti Gomes. “He said he purposely tried to kill me,” joked Pereira. The tension was flying around the stands, awaiting the toot from Tony Harrington’s whistle to see them one step closer to safety.
“This is a fantastic feeling,” Pereira said. “I am a very simple guy, I like to be with them [the fans], I like to feel part of the family. Feeling the happiness of the supporters is, for me, the most important thing. Football is not all about tactics, it is about connection and team spirit. At this moment, when I look at my team, I see a team that celebrates together and suffers together.
West Ham never got going, their best chance falling to Evan Ferguson in the first half after good work by Jarrod Bowen down the right. The winger burst into the box and pulled it back but the Republic of Ireland international, making his first start for West Ham, got the ball stuck under his feet and fluffed his lines.
Strand Larsen did not suffer from the same problem. In this fixture last season, the former Wolves captain Maximilian Kilman thought he had scored a late equaliser, only to have it ruled out by VAR.
The way he influenced the opener on this occasion will have left him with a sinking feeling once again. Strand Larsen was given enough space to slowly turn his frame on the edge of the box and take aim, his shot deflecting off the now West Ham defender Kilman and into the net.
Wolves were dominant before the break, helped by the Brazilian midfield pairing of André and João Gomes, the latter having signed a new five-year deal at the club. The duo have helped ensure that their side have not missed the suspended Matheus Cunha too much, picking up seven points in the three games he has been absent from. Up against James Ward-Prowse and Lucas Paquetá, they were able to give Wolves the edge in a scrappy fixture.
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Gomes almost set up a second goal when he surged through a plethora of claret and blue shirts, before finding Strand Larsen who laid the ball to Marshall Munetsi. The Zimbabwean took aim from the penalty spot but his shot rifled back off the crossbar.
There were plenty of fouls and confrontations on the pitch, resulting in four Wolves players going into Harrington’s book. The hosts knew they had to fight for every inch, even if West Ham were not at their best.
Graham Potter took action at half-time in an attempt to change the dynamic, making a triple substitution. It meant West Ham got a greater foothold in the match but they were still without a creative spark. They felt they deserved a penalty when Matt Doherty kicked Füllkrug, who was a handful, in the face but Harrington was not interested, adding the further blow of a booking for the Germany striker’s complaints.
In the end, it was a case of holding on as Pereira threw on defensive reinforcements, although Munetsi almost netted a second in the dying seconds.
Not that it mattered and it would not have changed how sweet the pints taste for Pereira, his players and the fans. “I am emotional and very proud of my team today,” Pereira said. Soon to be tired and emotional.