The Relegation Battle: West Ham down, two more to go on final day

ANALYSIS
By James Daly

It’s taken until the penultimate weekend of the season but we finally have our first casualty; where West Ham managed to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory at Wigan in a game they needed to win to stay up, thus becoming this season’s first casualties.

But the real question is who will join the Hammers in the Championship next season? And going into the final day of the season there are still five teams who could succumb to the drop in what is sure to be a memorable last round of games.

Blackpool and Wolves gave themselves huge boosts in their survival quests with wins over Bolton and Sunderland respectively (for Wolves their second win in a row as Mick McCarthy’s men seem to be hitting form at just the right time), while Blackburn’s point against Manchester United wasn’t to be sniffed at.

Birmingham continue to plummet with a 2-0 defeat at home to Fulham and are now level on points with Wigan, who managed to get that last-minute win against West Ham thanks to Charles N’Zogbia.

But how do things look going into the last games of the 2010-11 season?

Another week, another inch closer to safety for Rovers who drew 1-1 with champions Manchester United in a game that had a lot riding on it at both ends of the table. It looked like Brett Emerton might have earned Rovers a win before Rooney’s late penalty but it means Steve Kean’s side are that bit closer to survival.

Don’t rule out a draw against Wolves in their final game; Rovers have drawn their last three games against teams in the bottom six – it would mean they’d have to rely on other results but it would probably be enough.

Next match: Wolves (a)

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Mick McCarthy’s men are the form side down at the bottom of the table after picking up their second win in a week with a 3-1 win at Sunderland. It was Steven Fletcher again who was leading the line – and scoring – as Wolves jumped above Birmingham in the table.

McCarthy’s side has been decimated by injury this season but they have hit form at the just the right time and a win against Blackburn means they wouldn’t have to worry about results around them on the final day of the season.

Next match: Blackburn (h)

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There were worrying signs for Birmingham fans at St Andrews on Sunday where not only did their side lose 2-0, throwing away a big chance to climb clear of the drop, but Fulham were so dominant in their victory that it looked like Alex McLeish’s men had already consigned themselves to relegation.

Added to that, McLeish has new injury worries as he lost Martin Jiranek, Lee Bowyer and Alex Hleb during the game, with Cameron Jerome failing a fitness test before kick-off. And with a trip to Spurs – themselves hoping to cement a fifth-spot finish – it could not be a taller task to stay in the Premier League.

Next match: Tottenham (a)

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You can’t say Blackpool haven’t entertained this season, and Saturday’s 4-3 win over Bolton was just another example of the sort of thing we can expect from the Seasiders if they do manage to stay up. It won’t be easy, though, with a trip to Old Trafford their final game of the season.

But with United having won the title and with the Champions League final six days later, perhaps their minds will be elsewhere and Blackpool will give it a real go. And with star man Charlie Adam on form – he hit a late winner in the Bolton win – and potentially playing his last game for the Seasiders he’ll be keen to leave his mark. Goal difference is so close that Blackpool could stay up as long as they don’t lose too heavily.

Next match: Manchester United (a)

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A few weeks ago the Latics seemed dead and buried but Roberto Martinez’s side have managed to pull a few results out of the bag to drag themselves into the mix as we head into the final game of the season.

They’ll need Charles N’Zogbia at the top of his game; the winger has netted five in his last five games and Stoke is a difficult place to get a result at the best of times, but the 3-2 comeback win over West Ham has given Wigan a huge injection of confidence. Depending on how other results go and with goal difference so close, even a draw could surprisingly keep Wigan up.

Next match: Stoke (a)

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Well that’s it, West Ham’s six-year stint in the Premier League is over. And you can’t say they didn’t have a decent chance of staying up; too many points have been chucked away in the last few weeks of the season, especially on Sunday where Demba Ba’s brace put the Hammers 2-0 up only for Avram Grant’s side to lose 3-2.

The absence of Scott Parker, suffering with an Anchilles injury, certainly didn’t help and his cameo at the weekend will almost certainly be his last game for the Hammers. It was also Grant’s last game; he was given his marching orders not long after the final whistle.

Next match: Sunderland (h)

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