West Ham’s Premier League fate was confirmed on Sunday afternoon.
There was only one scenario that kept us up and that never happened.
The Hammers collected three points and scored three goals, yet Tottenham’s win over a lacklustre Everton side kept Spurs safe on 41 points, leaving West Ham stranded on 39.
Crucially, even reaching 40, or even matching Spurs on 41 points would not have been enough due to Tottenham’s far superior goal difference.
Even 41 points would not have kept West Ham in the Premeir League
Across the last nine Premier League seasons, clubs hitting 36 points had survived. Back in November, projections suggested 38 points would mean finishing 18th and 39 would be enough to stay up. Historically, in the 30 seasons of the 38 game Premier League format, the survival rates were:
- 36 points — 60%
- 37 points – 76.67%
- 38 points — 80%
- 39 points — 86.7%
- 40 points — 90%
- 41 points – 96.67%
- 42 points – 96.67%
- 43+ points — 100%
West Ham, painfully, already hold the record for the highest points total for a relegated side in the 20‑team era, 42 points in 2002/03.
Three goals against Leeds was too little, too late
In contrast, Nottingham Forest stayed up in 2023/24 under Nuno Espírito Santo with just 32 points (they would have had 36 without their PSR deduction).
Whether 2025/26 proves to be a statistical outlier remains unclear. The strong performances of promoted sides Leeds United – who also reached an FA Cup semi‑final – and Sunderland who qualified for the Europa League made survival far more difficult than usual.
West Ham’s final tally of 10 wins, 9 draws and 19 defeats ultimately sent them down. The previous three straight losses, against Brentford, Arsenal and Newcastle United sealed our fate. But the damage was done over the full campaign a –19 goal difference, accumulated under two managers, with a third (as Claret & Hugh has previously reported) expected to arrive imminently, when Nuno leaves.
This summer is set to be a busy one for the club, and for me, Gonzo, Martin and Sean as we report on all the developments
If you are a failing manager your sacked. If you don’t play well your dropped and sold. If you don’t do your job as one of the backroom staff your sacked. So Sulivan your not special. Get out of our club
Villa not trying against Spurs did not help. Some of Nuno`s tactics at times were very bemusing but I am looking on the positive side, a chance to rebuild from top to bottom
and hopefully Sullivan will go.
I absolutely agree that conceding goals for fun has definitely contributed to relegation. Last season was bad enough, but this season, particularly early on, took incompetence to a whole new level. Which begs the question, how did a defender that only appears to have turned up in the last few months win HOTY?
Limited choice perhaps.
Maybe Sullivan had a hand in the voting.
Mavro stood out because he did turn up eventually, once he had a Disasi level player alongside and could focus on his own job. Sadly nobody was able to change games for us or instill any confidence. Fernandez, Summerville and Bowen sparked but rarely had the quality around them to make any difference. A prize for persistence was the best anyone deserved.