(Credit: Imago)

Richie Mills

Fri 10 April 2026 12:10, UK

West Ham United have been backed to return to winning ways against Wolves after things couldn’t have gone much worse in their FA Cup loss to Leeds United.

That is according to former Celtic striker Chris Sutton, who believes the Hammers can finally get one over on Wolves this season.

Wolves are looking to complete the double over West Ham for the first time since 2019-20, with the Midlands outfit beating the London side in the league and Carabao Cup this term.

West Ham, who have lost three on the spin to Wolves in all competitions, have won their last five Premier League home games against the Molineux outfit, so they will be hopeful of all three points at London Stadium on Friday.

Nuno Espirito Santo‘s team are in dire need of three points as West Ham aim to claim a win that will take them out of the relegation zone.

Chris Sutton backs Jarrod Bowen to shine

Following the March international break, West Ham suffered an agonising penalty shootout defeat to Leeds United in the FA Cup quarter-finals last Sunday.

The Hammers came from two goals down in second-half stoppage time before being pipped 4-2 in the shootout at London Stadium, as captain Jarrod Bowen failed to convert his effort.

But Sutton thinks the England international will be key against West Ham, as he predicted a 2-1 home win.

“It’s so hard to know what to expect this weekend, because so many teams have not played for a few weeks, and they will have lost any momentum,” he said in his BBC Sport predictions column.

“Wolves know they are down but they have definitely improved under Rob Edwards, who has had some decent results after a difficult start. They are one of the teams who have been on a good run, but their last match was on 16 March.

“Seeing West Ham’s FA Cup tie with Leeds go to extra-time last weekend was the worst-case scenario for them, with a massive game like this on the horizon.

“They obviously lost on penalties in the end, and their league form has not been great either, with only one win in their past six games.

“That’s why they are still in the bottom three at the moment but I think they will be out of the relegation zone on Friday night.

“Wolves have beaten West Ham twice already this season, at Molineux in the league and the Carabao Cup, but this time I am going for a Hammers win.

“All the pressure is on them here, but they are at home and Jarrod Bowen will probably be the player who makes the difference.”

West Ham must be wary of improving Wolves

On paper, West Ham couldn’t have asked for a better fixture to try and lift them out of the relegation zone for the first time in months.

Premier League basement side Wolves look set to go down but Rob Edwards has got a tune out of his former club in 2026.

Indeed, following a run of 11 successive defeats between October and December, Wolves have only lost four of their 13 matches in the Premier League (three wins and six draws). For West Ham, they will hope Bowen can continue his excellent scoring record against Wolves.

Five of his six goals against Wolves have come in his last five home matches against them, netting in each of his previous three.

What also bodes well is that West Ham, who have some injury concerns, have lost only one of their last six home Premier League games (one win and four draws).

In that period, they collected more points than in their first nine home matches of the 2025-26 campaign (two wins and seven losses).