West Ham blew Bournemouth away to pull six points clear of the relegation zone in a potentially season-defining 4-0 win.
Pablo Fornals scored a scorpion kick to seal victory in the second half in a style performance in front of 1,300 away supporters who braved travel chaos to reach the South Coast.
Michail Antonio and Lucas Paqueta both scored early headers before Declan Rice powered home a third just before half-time.
The Hammers then eased to victory and into 13th place in the league, leapfrogging Gary O’Neil’s side and Wolves to earn back-to-back away wins for the first time since January 2022.
Nizaar Kinsella witnessed the east Londoners allay fears about a return to the Championship...
Lukasz Fabianski - 8
Surprisingly busy considering the scoreline, saving a header from Chris Mepham, a long range effort from Jefferson Lerma and then making a good save with his feet from a lively Solanke at the end of a first half where his side took their chances.
Vladimir Coufal - 7
Won the ball back in the Bournemouth half and played a one-two with Bowen before crossing for Paqueta’s second goal. It was a stunning passage of play by the Czech defender who did his defensive work with some competence.
Nayef Aguerd - 5
A shaky display, getting turned by Dominic Solanke in the 31st minute and almost giving a penalty away on Philip Billing. Even still, he ended the match with a clean sheet.
Kurt Zouma - 7
A dominant presence at the back, blocking numerous shots but both he and Aguerd looked uncomfortable as partners at the time. He outshone his colleague and earned a clean sheet.
Aaron Cresswell - 6
His good whipped delivery was nodded home by Antonio after five minutes. He was selected ahead of Emerson Palmieri but showed defensive weakness on a few occasions with Bournemouth having some joy down his flank, not helped by Benrahma in front of him.
Lucas Paqueta - 7
The Brazil international doubled the scoring after just 12 minutes with an uncharacteristically dominant header at the far post. He picked his moments to hurt Bournemouth, showing his class but also drifting out of the game at times.
Declan Rice - 9
The 24-year-old left people in no doubt about his influence on his team affecting the game at both ends with tenacious defending, some of the best uses of the ball and then scoring in the 43rd minute. The away end spent almost the entire match chanting about the midfielder who smashed in his finish after Bournemouth failed to clear their lines.
“Ten more years Declan Rice,” they chanted, but clubs like Arsenal and Chelsea will have been watching.
Tomas Soucek - 6
Soucek was poor in possession but was a threat at set pieces and an asset defensively in an aspect of the match that helped Moyes’s side secure victory.
Said Benrahma - 5
Benrahma had three big chances on the edge of the box where he typically is a threat. He wasted all three, shooting right into Neto’s arms each time. His defending also left a lot to be desired.
Michail Antonio - 7
A typically hard-working display with a close-range headed goal that opened the scoring for the Hammers. He set them on their way to a crucial win before coming off in the 65th minute.
Jarrod Bowen - 7
During his best run of the season, he added an assist for Fornals’s stunning scorpion kick. It was his seventh goal involvement (three goals and four assists) in the last 12 matches in a late-season resurgence.
Substitutes:
Pablo Fornals - 9
The Spaniard simply scored one of the goals of the season, reacting to a Bowen cross played behind him to score a sensational scorpion kick. He almost got an assist for Cornet’s late strike.
Danny Ings - 7
Didn’t get any chance but held the ball up well, winning fouls and helping his side ease to victory.
Maxwel Cornet - 7
He saw a late goal ruled out for offside, unlucky after good movement saw him steal in front of the defence to almost seal a joint-record away victory at 5-0.
Thilo Kehrer - N/A
Flynn Downes - N/A
Unused subs: Areola; Emerson, Ogbonna.
