VAR mayhem robs West Ham of point

West Ham 0 Arsenal 1

Pre-match it's a pint of IPA in Hackney Wick's Crate with daughter Lola and her boyfriend Michael, hoping to reduce the tension. In the stadium, we find a clean-shaven Big Sam up from Wales, Nigel and his lucky Stranglers bag, super sub Lisa and Matt wearing his tee-shirt from the last game at the Boleyn, ten years ago to the day. Michael the thespian is away, possibly giving Keir Starmer lessons in vision and dramatic delivery.

Nuno opts for five at the back bringing in Todibo for Pablo. The atmosphere is fervent and tense, though Arsenal dominate the first 25 minutes. The Greek Bloke blocks Calafiori, then from a Declan Rice corner Hermansen has to save brilliantly from Trossard, who hits the outside of the post from the rebound. Next up Rice whips in a free-kick and Mavropanos has to make another great block close to the line. Arsenal seem to get most of the decisions and earn some revived chants of "Same old Arsenal, always cheating!"

It takes a crunching tackle from Summerville to get the crowd going. Ben White is injured in the 50-50 and has to go off, with Rice temporarily shifted to become an unlikely right-back. West Ham start to threaten at the end of the half. Bowen almost plays in Diouf and Summerville finally gets a run at the Arsenal defence before shooting wide. The best chance comes when Wan-Bissaka storms down the right and plays in a cross and Taty Castellanos' diving header is parried by Raya.

We're happy to be 0-0 at half-time, hoping that Arsenal will get increasingly nervous. The Irons start the second half with more confidence. Taty has a shot blacked and Bowen can't connect properly with the second effort. Pablo comes on for Castellanos and puts himself about a bit. Diouf gets in a fine cross that Pablo almost reaches — though it's clearly deflected off a defender for a corner the ref gives a goal kick. After good work by Saka Gyokores heads over. This could go either way.

At 0-0 comes a turning point. Mateus Fernandes plays a neat give and go with Pablo and is through on goal, but he takes one touch too many and Raya makes a great save with his outstretched foot.

Almost inevitably it's 1-0 to the Arsenal seven minutes from time. Impressive sub Odegaard exchanges passes with Rice before picking out Trossard, whose shot is deflected in off Soucek. Some Arsenal fans in the Billy Bonds Stand cheer the goal, 1980s-style aggro erupts and there are ugly scenes as one of them is kicked down the steps with the stewards slow to react. 

ALWAYS CRASHING IN THE SAME VAR 

Callum Wilson is on for Disasi as the game moves into added time. After a knock-down from the Greek Bloke Wilson's shot is deflected wide for a corner. "Come on you Irons!" plead the crowd. Mads Hermansen comes up for it. Bowen's corner comes over and there's an almighty scramble in the box. Raya fumbles his catch the ball drops loose and is cleared, but then thumped over the line by Wilson before Rice can boot it out from the back of the net. The London Stadium erupts and Arsenal's title dream is now in the balance. 

Only after the angry Gunners surround the ref it's a sodding VAR check on Pablo's arm as Arteta leaps around the touchline crying wolf about blocking goalkeepers. There's a five minute stoppage before ref Chris Kavanagh is called to the monitor. He watches the incident 17 times before disallowing the goal, which hardly suggests it's a clear and obvious decision. After review, VAR favours the title challengers.

The replay reveals that Pablo's arm is across Raya's neck, though he's arguably using it for leverage, and is also being pushed into the keeper by Trossard. It's the sort of challenge on keepers that Arsenal have been getting away with several times this season. To make it worse there are numerous fouls on West Ham players as the ball comes in and before Pablo's challenge. Rice drags the Greek Bloke into the back of the net, Soucek is bundled to the floor, Todibo is being wrestled by Odegaard and Trossard is holding and pushing Pablo. Mick McManus and Giant Haystacks are probably in there as well. If you give one foul in the box you surely have to give them all and award West Ham a penalty or more accurately four penalties. Infamy, infamy.

So that's it. Arsenal are going to win the league and relegation looks likely for West Ham. We've payed well and with spirit. A point would have given WHU a real boost for the next two games. I apologise to Lola for introducing her to West Ham, though perhaps heartache is good for the soul.

We resignedly head to the Eagle for Guinness and Tayto crisps. Nigel is at least cheered by Rochdale beating Boreham Wood (Matt has an interesting fact about them) and has a good trivia quiz question about John Moncur's son George. Not to mention some recent meeting Ian Gillan stories. All better than thinking about Lincoln away. We've now got to hope it goes Spursy yet again, and win our final two matches. It's not looking good but we gave Arsenal a game and deserved a point. COYI!

PLAYER RATINGS: Hermansen 7; Wan-Bissaka 7, Mavropanos 8, Disasi 7 (Wilson 7), Todibo 7, Diouf 7; Soucek 7, Fernandes 7; Bowen 7, Castellanos 7 (Pablo 6), Summerville 7. 

Bad luck, bad defending and Emery's dodgy line-up push WHU back in drop zone

Brentford 3 West Ham 0

It's a nervous afternoon again listening to the game on Radio 5. Early on Pablo uses his strength well to get beyond the last defender, only he hesitates too long and under pressure allows Kelleher to save his scuffed shot. 

The Bus Stop From Hounslow take the lead after 15 minutes. Bowen allows Lewis-Potter to cut inside and cross. Kayode gets beyond Summerville to hit the post and trying to clear the Greek Bloke hits it in off the bar. 

West Ham respond well, Taty Castellanos takes down Diouf's free kick to fire against the outside of the post. Then from Diouf's free kick Mavropanos rises to power home a great header. Only it's VAR time and Dinos is ruled offside by a shoulder. 

Brentford have a couple of chances as Hermansen rushes out from his area, miscues his header, and Damsgaard shoots wide of an open goal. Then Thiago doesn't connect properly in a one-on-one with Mads. There's time for Castellanos to head Bowen's corner on to the inside of the post and then force Kelleher intro a fine save with a long-range effort. It could easily be 3-3 at half-time.

Unfortunately West Ham make the worst possible start to the second half. Outtara twists past Diouf and Malick goes to ground to concede a cheap penalty. Thiago strokes it home. Diouf has improved a lot defensively recently but that was more like the naive defender of early in the season.

THE LAST POST

Soucek has a credible penalty claim turned down. The Irons haven't given up hitting the woodwork as Jimmy Summerville performs a typical twisting dribble and thumps a shot against the bar. Soucek strikes the rebound against the outside of the post.

The third goal arrives as West Ham press forward. Sub Wan-Bissaka ambles across to his man too slowly, Traore hasn't tracked Damsgaard and the Bees man shoots though the legs of Fernandes and into the corner.

So it's 3-0 to Brentford, which hasn't reflected the game. We're relying on the kindness of strangers the next evening as Aston Villa take on Spurs. Only Unai Emery makes seven changes from the side that lost at Notts Forest in the Europa League. Clearly concentrating on Europe his zombie side allow Spurs to quickly take a two-goal lead and win 2-1, pushing West Ham back into the bottom three. 

It's not looking good, but is it all over? I still think we can get something from the Arsenal game and it's possible for it to go all Spursy, while Forest aren't out of it yet (ok they are now thanks to Chelsea). One day we'll hit the post and it will go in. Only a week ago we were celebrating Wilson's late winner against Everton. Nuno needs to keep calm and channel the players' anger at the Brentford defeat into the next match. We probably need to win two out of three matches. Otherwise it's Lincoln away.

Wilson wins it late to boost Hammers' survival hopes

West Ham 2 Everton 1

Up against the Moyesiah, what could possibly go right? In the Billy Bonds Stand we find Matt and Lisa, mysteriously not wearing colours, Nigel with his lucky Stranglers bag, ace of bass CQ, Michael the Whovian not missing Karren Brady, Big Sam busy compiling survival spreadsheets, and our new mate, the bloke who looks like Mark Kermode.

The first half is cagey. Summerville gets chopped a lot and Garner and O'Brien are booked. Disasi does some solid defending. Soucek has a header well over and Barry has a shot saved by Mads. Late on Bowen fizzes a cross across the box but Pablo, lacking that striking instinct, hasn't gambled and got on the end of it.

We really have to go for it in the second half with Spurs and Wolves drawing. Jimmy Summerville gets in a dangerous cross and Taty has a penalty appeal turned down after Pickford makes contact and our man goes down as if hit by the Grealish sniper.

The breakthrough comes on 51 minutes when Bowen curls in a corner. Pablo does well to block Pickford as Tomas Soucek gets between two defenders to head home and wheel away doing his windmill celebration. A trademark Moyes goal.

But Everton are a good side with a fine away record. Moyes brings on Tyrique George and Tim Iroegbunam, both of whom make a difference. West Ham are pressed back. Soucek and Disasi have to make a last-ditch double clearance from in front of the line after Iroegbunam's cross. You have to admire the way Disasi celebrates clearances. The crowd try to roar the Irons home.

NO DOUBTING TOMAS

A cross from George is met by Barry but Super Tomas Soucek somehow manages to head it up and onto the bar. Next there's a big appeal for a penalty after Fernandes grapples with Barry and his hand touches the ball. He might not have been able to see the ball but he still seems to flick it and we're lucky not to be punished. Mateus needs to be more careful around his own box.

Potts replaces Taty. Mystic Matt asks, "When was the last time Wilson ever did anything for us?" as Callum comes on for Pablo after 81 minutes. It seems like we've held on for a gritty one-nil win until the 88th minute. Mystic Morris predicts Everton will score 20 seconds before they do. The Greek Bloke gets his head on to yet another cross, but it falls to Tarkowski who heads back into the path of Dewsbury-Hall who scores with an emphatic half-volley. Bugger. Spurs are now winning so we'll be back in the bottom three.

But there are eight minutes of added time and the crowd stays with the Irons. With 92 minutes gone Bowen tries another cross. It's headed clear but Walker-Peters and Potts do well to recycle the ball to Diouf on the left. His fine cross is headed back across goal by Jarrod Bowen and there is Callum Wilson to keep calm and hit his shot into the ground and past the despairing Pickford. Oh yes! The crowd erupts in a mass of limbs as Wilson salutes the faithful. None of us ever doubted him. We've not since scenes like this since we won the Betway Cup.

We hold on for the remaining seven minutes as Hermansen catches the last cross to huge cheers. WHU remain two points clear of Spurs! And we've only aged about ten years in the process.

In the Eagle we retire to the hanging gardens of Chobham Road. We discuss the surprising news that Chelsea's Cucurella has a barber, who seems to have neglected to ever cut his hair. Nigel reminisces about meeting his heavy metal mate Ian Gillan and there's a competition to name the five league clubs that start and end with the same letter. There's Aston Villa and Charlton Athletic plus three others for those who can be bothered. Michael prepares to take a pew and see the Choirboys, hoping West Ham will now be singing from the same hymn sheet. 

This feels like a very big three points. We've got to hope Spurs implode at Villa and we get something at Brentford. Forest are still just about catchable. Whatever happens Nuno has effected quote a turnaround since the Forest defeat. It's in our hands now. Irons!

PLAYER RATINGS: Hermansen 6; Walker-Peters 7, Disasi 8, Mavropanos 7, Diouf 7; Soucek 9, Fernandes 7; Bowen 8 (Todibo n/a), Castellanos 6 (Potts 6), Pablo 5 (Wilson 8), Summerville 7.

Brady quits as Kretinsky and Sullivan share power

It's all change at West Ham. With rather strange timing Karren Brady has announced she's quitting as vice-chair after 16 years. Most West Ham fans will feel that's a good thing. Her achievements do include negotiating a cheap rent for the London Stadium and getting 50,000 season ticket holders. But these are far outweighed by the negatives. 

Brady wildly over-promised about the move to the London Stadium and we've never got close to, "a world class stadium with a world class team." The London Stadium has improved with the squaring off of the ends and this year's games have proved you can get a decent atmosphere there, though Brady and Sullivan never really seemed to appreciate that the rake of the stands is wrong. Long-term we need to buy the LS and reconfigure at least one side of it.

Brady and Sullivan did win a trophy and stumble upon a good manager in David Moyes, though they twice let him go when he should have been kept. They've appointed a lot of duffers, with only Allardyce and Bilic being relative successes. Grant, Pellegrini, Lopetegui and Potter all failed, while going through three recruitment gurus in Rob Newman, Tim Steidten and Kyle Macaulay shows a real lack of strategy. There's a long list of terrible signings. Under Sullivan and Brady the club has looked outdated and been overtaken by smaller clubs like Brighton, Bournemouth, Fulham and Brentford. While Lord Sugar surely wouldn't approve of a £104m loss last season and a relegation struggle.

Now the Guardian reports that Daniel Kretinsky and David Sullivan are buying the late David Gold's shares and will each own 40 per cent of the club. You sense that Kretinsky has despaired at the way the club is run and now wants a bigger say. While David Sullivan hasn't gone, any change is welcome. Kretinsky is called The Sphinx because no-one knows much about him, but he will surely want to see a more efficient business making money and competing in the top half of the Premier League. Sullivan is now 77 and Kretinsky surely has his eyes on ultimately taking over.

Battling draw for Hammers in lacklustre game at Palace

Crystal Palace 0 West Ham 0

I'm at my sports book group eating pizza in Kings Cross for the first half of this fixture, while fellow-season ticket holder Nigel is at the theatre, which prompts Mystic Matt to suggest the game has gone. 

In the first half Brennan Johnson sends a free header hopelessly wide and then curls a better effort just past the post. For the Irons Castellanos has an overhead effort blocked on the line by Lacroix. The best chance comes when Diouf curls in a delicious cross and the Greek Bloke meets it with a towering header. Somehow Dean Henderson manages to claw it away with one hand. That would have been Dinos's fourth goal in four games.

For the second half I've made the Mabel Tavern, unfortunately sitting next to a Spurs supporter. It's attritional stuff with both sides breaking without much end product. Bowen and Summerville can't find the final ball, Pedro lumbers around without looking like scoring, as the Palace centre backs look very secure.

One good bit of skill from Jimmy Summerville almost sets Castellanos away only for him to be blocked in the box. When Sarr does get the ball in the net for Palace the goal is correctly disallowed for handball by Mateta. Sub Kante makes a great last-minute burst into the box to win a corner but again it comes to nothing.

So it ends nil-nil and it's two clean sheets in a row. It's not been a fluid performance but the team spirit does seem excellent. Fernandes has been very busy. Disasi and Mavropanos are both very impressive at the back and Diouf gets in some good clearances, with Walker-Peters, keeping AWB out, also doing his bit. Credit to Hermansen too, who has kept another clean sheet.

Earlier this season we would have lost this match so it's not a disaster. A win would have put WHU four points clear of Spurs and you could argue Palace must have been tired after playing in Europe. On the other hand a point away sees us two points ahead of Spurs, so it's as you were. It could be two points dropped though it could also be the point that keeps us up. The next five games will tell as we hit squeaky bum time.

Dinos and Taty at the double in Wolves thrashing

West Ham 4 (four) Wolves 0

Up against a team that hasn't won away all season - what could possibly go right? We're a little nervous in the London Stadium as our team gather. Lisa is on shift work and replaced by super sub The Gav, plus regulars Big Sam in shirtsleeves, Nigel with his Stranglers plastic bag and Mystic Matt. 

The good news is all the Leeds game absentees are playing apart from AWB, with Jimmy Summerville back on the left. Encouragingly Wolves are wearing a terrible away kit that seems to be made up of discarded turquoise women's hiking tops from Blacks. 

West Ham start quite slowly as Wolves produce some neat passing and Armstrong forces a save from Hermansen. Still, the Zen Buddhism course that Lisa has sent Matt on seems to have paid off as he's remarkably positive towards Pablo all game. 

It's attritional fare until the 42nd minute. A corner is cleared to Bowen, who cuts inside and crosses into the box. The Greek Bloke rises like the Colossus of Rhodes and snaps back his neck to power a fantastic header into the corner of Sa's net. "Greek Bloke!! Greek Bloke!!" holler Big Sam and Michael, his biggest fans. Matt says he never doubted him. Pablo has a decent low shot saved and it's 1-0 at the break.

The second half sees Taty give away a free kick on the edge of the box and Angel Gomes smacks a shot on to the post. From the rebound Summerville races clear to try and chip Sa, just missing when he should probably have passed to Castellanos.

But West Ham are playing a lot better now. Taty finds Bowen on the wing who cuts inside Krejci to strike a brilliant shot against the post. That's three times in two games Jarrod has hit the woodwork.

But there's something in the air tonight. Summerville does really well to nick the ball and find Taty. He finds Pablo who produces a Brazilian flick to play in Taty who toe-pokes home a poacher's goal to send the Bobby Moore Stand into raptures. Castellanos produces a Pablo Fornals-style salute to celebrate.

Two minutes later Bowen wins the ball off a Wolves midfielder and finds Taty on the edge of the box. He turns to fire a low effort into the bottom corner. It's three! What sort of thing is happening here? West Ham are massive, everywhere we go.

WE'VE GOT DINOS MAVROPANOS

"You're going down with the Tottenham!" chant the gleeful home fans. Bowen never stops running and wins another corner. When it comes over Dinos is being held but still manages to swivel and volley a finish worthy of Erling Haaland into the net. "Greek Bloke! Greek Bloke!" shouts Big Sam in wonderment. He's also celebrating his first league win of the season since burying a season ticket.

We're quietly confident of at least a point now. It's almost five when Bowen finds Traore. The enigmatic sub uses his speed to break clear and then chips wide of goal when he should score. Taty goes off and it's the Greek Bloke who is on a hat-trick. He's also been imperious at the back. We can actually enjoy the end of the game. 

What a weekend. Gavin is up early tomorrow to catch the coach for Lincoln versus Orient while I'm heading to Stoke versus Blackburn to see if Spurs will be able to cope with a wet Tuesday night in Stoke.

We trek to Ye Olde Black Lion for Brixton Pale Ale, where it's unusually busy and full of disbelieving Hammers. When did Dinos turn into Franz Beckenbauer? Matt thinks that giving him the captaincy at Burton might have been the turning point. Rarely can a much-derided player have turned it round in such a fashion.

Never mind returning astronauts, West Ham should be tomorrow's front page news. We're out of the bottom three and two points clear of Spurs. The pressure is on them. Anything could yet happen, but we managed to win a must-win game and the impetus is now with the Hammers. Come on you Irons!

PLAYER RATINGS: Hermansen 6; Walker-Peters 7, Disasi 7, Mavropanos 9, Diouf 7; Soucek 7, Fernandes 7 (Magassa n/a); Bowen 8, Castellanos 8, (Wilson 7), Pablo 7 (Potts 6), Summerville 7 (Traore 6). 

Don't leave us this way

The club did the right thing in not letting back in those fans who left when West Ham were 2-0 down against Leeds. I've never understood fans leaving a game early. Is beating the Stratford kettle really that important? This season more added time is being played than ever before. We had 11 minutes against Leeds to get back in the game and for once we did. Those goals were the reward for the loyal fans who stayed in their seats. 

There's a culture of leaving games early that makes the London Stadium less intimidating than it should be. Perhaps at three or four down it might be more understandable, but even when getting tonked you might see a consolation goal, something about a player's attitude that's encouraging or a bit of skill from the opposition. We pay enough for our ninety minutes plus - let's stay there for all of it like proper fans.