LONDON, April 25 (Reuters) - West Ham United boosted their Premier League survival with a dramatic 2-1 win at home to Everton on Saturday, with substitute Callum Wilson's 92nd-minute winner keeping the Hammers out of the relegation zone.
Everton managed the only shot on target in a drab first half, a tame effort from Thierno Barry after 35 minutes, in a quiet London Stadium where many fans were seemingly keeping one eye on relegation rivals Tottenham Hotspur's score.
But the game sparked into life when Jordan Pickford's save from Taty Castellanos led to a brief VAR check of the Everton goalkeeper's follow-through and also the corner from which Tomas Soucek headed the opening goal in the 51st minute.
The Hammers dug deep as Everton pinned them increasingly further back into their own half, with Soucek denying Barry with a superb goal-line block before Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall fired home an equaliser in the 88th minute.
West Ham were not done, though, and Wilson popped up in added time, sweeping home from close range to give the hosts a precious victory.
West Ham remain 17th with 36 points from 34 games, two points above 18th-placed Spurs, who won at already-relegated Wolverhampton Wanderers, and three points behind Nottingham Forest in 16th.
Hammers boss Nuno Espirito Santo accepted that his side had given their fans a nervy afternoon, saying: "Nobody's making it easy. It's going to be a big fight until the end."
Everton are 11th on 47 points, three behind Brighton & Hove Albion in sixth, though a run of four points from five games has seen their push for a European place lose momentum.
Everton boss David Moyes – who returned to former club West Ham for his 750th Premier League game as a manager – said he felt his players were hard done by.
"I didn't think we deserved to come away with no points from the game," Moyes told reporters.
WEST HAM SNATCH WINNER AT THE DEATH
Everton were marginally the better team in the opening stages but created few real chances, while West Ham improved throughout the first half, with Crysencio Summerville their biggest threat.
The hosts began brightly after the restart, taking a deserved lead when Soucek rose highest to convert Jarrod Bowen's corner, but then tried to hold on to their one-goal lead, inviting relentless pressure from Everton.
Barry had a brilliant chance to equalise with a close-range header but Soucek nodded his goal-bound effort on to the bar and clear.
Everton felt they should have had a late penalty when Mateus Fernandes handled the ball while grappling with Barry, which VAR deemed was an accident, a decision Moyes said was surprising.
"It would be still pretty harsh on Fernandes, but he certainly punches the ball," Moyes said.
Minutes later, Dewsbury-Hall pounced on a loose ball in the box to break West Ham's hearts.
But eight minutes of added time gave the Hammers hope and Wilson needed only one chance to keep West Ham's fate in their own hands.
"We're the ones in the driving seat at the moment and if we take care of our own results it should stand us in good stead come the end of the season," Wilson told BBC Sport.
(Reporting by Sam Tobin; editing by Clare Fallon)
