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West Ham head to south London to take on Crystal Palace with a warning from Tottenham Hotspur boss Roberto De Zerbi ringing in their ears.
The Hammers have been in a four-way battle with bitter rivals Spurs, Forest and Leeds to avoid relegation from the Premier League.
But results this week have now made it what looks like a straight shootout between West Ham and Tottenham for survival.
Leeds are on 39 points after smashing Wolves while Forest are on 36 after beating Burnley with ease.
De Zerbi warns West Ham about what Spurs are about to do
Tottenham sit in the relegation zone on 31 points, one behind the Hammers – who face Palace on Monday night.
West Ham have been the hunters for the last four months, closing a 13-point gap to then leapfrog Tottenham.
How many points are we getting then? 😬
Feel free to tell me where I’m going wrong 😂
But now Nuno Espirito Santo’s side face a different pressure having become the hunted.
How West Ham deal with that pressure will dictate who goes down because survival is in their own hands with six games to play.
Photo by GLYN KIRK/AFP via Getty Images
But Spurs boss Roberto De Zerbi has warned West Ham that he knows what is about to happen in the relegation battle.
The newly-appointed Italian has failed to win either of his first two games in charge of Tottenham.
As a result West Ham know they can afford to lose against Palace and still stay up as long as they match Tottenham’s results in the final five games.
However, De Zerbi has boldly warned the Hammers that Tottenham will win all five.
Bold De Zerbi says Tottenham will win all five
And he insists he is not being arrogant or delusional in making such a prediction.
“Now it’s difficult to hear my words, but if you watch the players, if you analyse the level of the players, I think we can win five games in a row,” De Zerbi told Sky Sports.
Any changes to this team? I wouldn’t drop KWP any time soon 👀
Credit: GRV Media
“Not to be arrogant, because I’m not arrogant, especially now.
“But we have enough qualities to fight and to win games in a row.”
That is some prediction and the kind of form Premier League champions struggle to put together, let alone relegation contenders.
Photo by Jacques Feeney/Offside/Offside via Getty Images
Should Spurs prove their manager right, they will end up on 46 points.
Privately, West Ham are convinced eight points keeps them up from here.
Two wins and two draws, or three wins, would get that done and Nuno will be hoping three of them come on the road at Palace on Monday night.
Do that and West Ham will extend the gap to Spurs to four points with five to play.
With relegated Wolves away next, Tottenham will be confident of a first league win of 2026 soon.
But with tough assignments against the likes of Villa, Leeds and Chelsea to come, Tottenham will be hard-pressed to find many more.
While Spurs are at Wolves at the weekend, West Ham take on Everton at home at the weekend.
The Toffees suffered a blow in their dreams of Champions League qualification by failing to beat Brentford and losing to Liverpool.
Whether that means it is a good time to face David Moyes’ side remains to be seen.
Relegation run-in remaining fixtures:TeamRemaining fixtures (Opponent + H/A)West Ham UnitedCrystal Palace (A), Everton (H), Brentford (A), Arsenal (H), Newcastle United (A) and Leeds United (H)Nottingham ForestSunderland (A), Chelsea (A), Newcastle United (H), Man United (A) and Bournemouth (H)Tottenham HotspurWolves (A), Aston Villa (A), Leeds United (H), Chelsea (A) and Everton (H)Leeds UnitedBournemouth (A), Burnley (H), Spurs (A), Brighton (H) and West Ham (A)Join Our Newsletter
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