David Moyes hailed West Ham’s greater clinical edge after they picked up a much-needed three points against Wolves in the Premier League.
Headline summer signing Gianluca Scamacca started and scored his first top-flight goal for the Hammers at a relieved London Stadium on Saturday evening, with victory wrapped up after the interval by Jarrod Bowen’s effort.
In addition to boosting morale, such a triumph also saw West Ham escape the relegation zone after winning just one of their previous seven league matches to start the new season.
A win was important for Moyes against a Wolves side who only have one win to their name so far this term amid suggestions that manager Bruno Lage’s future is now in doubt, with their dismal run leading to reports that he was under pressure to quickly improve results to avoid a battle to save his own job, despite the Scot’s significant achievements during his second stint in charge in east London.
Moyes was honest in his assessment of West Ham’s display afterwards, believing they have been better this season and not won as he also praised goalscorers Scamacca and Bowen.
“I think we’ve played better this season and not picked up the points we deserved,” Moyes said. “But the most important thing was that our finishing was miles more clinical than we have been.
“They both did a really good job. Gianluca was very good. We really like him, he’s slightly different from what we’ve got. We are still trying to integrate him.”
On Bowen, whose World Cup chances appear under threat after not featuring for England in either recent Nations League game against Italy or Germany, he added: “That was huge for Jarrod.
“I told him that if he scores five or six goals he’ll be on that aeroplane [to Qatar]. Today was a typical Jarrod Bowen goal. That was more like Jarrod.”
Bowen suffered a gruesome dislocated finger shortly after scoring against Wolves, to which Moyes quipped: “His feet have been doing that at times this season.”
