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This latest setback represents a further embarrassing chapter in a difficult season for West Ham, increasing serious questions about the prospects of their manager. The London club became the initial team to fall to Wolves this term, enabling the West Midlands side to double their league points and lift their aspirations of avoiding the tag in the record books as the least successful team in Premier League history.

Dominant First-Half Performance Seals Long-Awaited Victory

Fewer than the first four minutes into the match, Wolves were able to demonstrate of discovering some confidence. The energetic Hwang Hee-chan provided a taste of his rejuvenated form with a lengthy run before turning provider thanks to neat combination play with Mateus Mané. His cut-back found an untracked Jhon Arias, who tapped in from point-blank range to give Wolves a home lead for the first time since October. Energy could be felt both on the pitch and in the terraces, a rarity for much of the term.

Facing a side terribly short on confidence and deprived of creative player Lucas Paquetá due to injury, this was the hosts' best opportunity for a win to date. At first confused by taking the lead, Wolves chose to protect it doggedly, falling back with eleven men behind the ball from an early stage.

Generous Guests Add to Their Own Miseries

West Ham proved accommodating visitors, adding to their own demise. First, ex- Wolves captain Max Kilman failed to execute a routine clearance from a cross, letting Mané to intervene, before being brought down by Soungoutou Magassa inside the penalty area. The teenage midfielder, once of Rochdale, was proving the most influential figure on the field. Hwang stepped up to score the subsequent penalty, extending the advantage. Ironic chants of "We will win the league" echoed around Molineux.

Lacking belief and inspiration, West Ham drifted away from the contest despite controlling possession, registering just a solitary attempt in the first half.

The away side's woes deepened just prior to halftime. The fearless Mané, a youth among trepidatious senior players, turned beautifully, cut in from the left, and fired a driven shot into the bottom corner from outside the box for his first professional goal. At last, the Wolves fans could enjoy themselves.

Ineffective Second-Half Comeback Attempt

With nothing to lose, coach Nuno made a double substitution at half-time and altered to a offensive 3-4-3 shape. However, star forward Jarrod Bowen remained quiet, and even introduction of Crysencio Summerville failed to provide the necessary spark.

A lingering sense of nervousness still clouded Wolves' judgment, uncertain whether to hoof the ball to safety or build patiently. But, they need not have worried against such passive resistance. West Ham's own failings were painfully obvious as they produced very little of substance in the final third.

Critical Fixtures On the Horizon

In the end, Wolves were the only side capable of adding to the scoreline, and West Ham will be thankful the embarrassment was not more severe. Attention now shifts to a critical midweek encounter at home to relegation-threatened Nottingham Forest, a match vital in the battle for top-flight survival. On this evidence, West Ham should have cause to be afraid.