Daily WHUFC News - 23rd October 2016

Reid scores dramatic late winner
WHUFC.com

Winston Reid scored a dramatic injury time winner as the Hammers made it back-to-back victories for the first time since April with a 1-0 win over Sunderland. The game looked to be heading for a draw until Reid picked up the ball from Dimitri Payet and fired a low shot from the edge of the box into the corner of the net. Reid is no stranger to scoring dramatic goals and few could forget his winning goal against Manchester United which was the final ever goal at the Boleyn Ground. He proved to be the hero once again and it was another crucial win for the Hammers. The victory was the first in the Premier League at London Stadium since August and it was a moment for Slaven Bilic to remember as it was the 100th goal since he took charge of the Club.
Bilic's side came into the game brimming with confidence following their superb victory over Crystal Palace last weekend and showed their fighting qualities once again to clinch all three points right at the death. The victory was the perfect boost ahead of the big London derby against Chelsea in the EFL Cup on Wednesday night and Bilic will now be hoping to make it three wins in a row and make it a perfect ten-days for the east London Club. The Hammers manager kept faith with the same system which had done so well to record an impressive victory over Crystal Palace last weekend. With Aaron Cresswell ruled out through suspension, the Hammers manager handed a first Premier League start to summer signing Edimilson Fernandes. The Switzerland U21 international almost made an immediate impact after just five minutes when he produced some good work down the left hand side and picked out Dimitri Payet who curled a shot inches past the post.

Payet was involved in the heart of the action once again on ten minutes as he broke free inside the box and saw his shot well kept out by Sunderland keeper Jordan Pickford. The Hammers were dominating the opening exchanges and were denied by the woodwork on 26 minutes. The ball fell to Payet who managed to find a bit of space through a mass of defenders and fired a low shot which beat Pickford but the ball cannoned back off the post. Sunderland finally managed to find a way into the game and created their first major opening on 38 minutes when Patrick van Aanholt found space just outside the area and fired the ball wide of the post. The danger signs were clearly there for West Ham and Sunderland had another great chance to break the deadlock shortly after half-time when Wahbi Khazri found himself one-on-one with Adrian but the keeper made a comfortable save diving away to his left hand side.

Van Aanholt also had a chance to get his name on the scoresheet on 57 minutes when his shot deflected just past the post. The home side were also pushing for the crucial opening goal and Fernandes could have made it a dream debut when he was picked out by Payet and struck the ball over the bar. Bilic brought Jonathan Calleri and Ashley Fletcher into the action as he tried everything to clinch the crucial winner. And his prayers were answered four minutes into injury time when Reid picked up the ball from Payet and fired a low shot past Pickford into the corner. Cue the wild celebrations around London Stadium and the fans will now be hoping for more of the same when the Hammers host Chelsea on Wednesday night.

West Ham: Adrian; Reid, Kouyaté, Ogbonna, Antonio (Feghouli 62); Noble, Obiang, Fernandes; Lanzini (Fletcher 83), Zaza (Calleri 68), Payet
Subs not used: Spiegel, Nordtveit, Collins, Oxford
Bookings: Fernandes

Sunderland: Pickford; Manquillo, Koné, O'Shea, Van Aanholt; Watmore (Gooch 74), Rodwell, Ndong, Pienaar (McNair 79), Khazri (Jones 85); Defoe
Subs not used: Domingues, Djilobodji, Anichebe, Honeyman
Bookings: Rodwell, N'Dong, Khazri

Referee: Bobby Madley
Attendance: 56,985

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Winston boosted by late winner
WHUFC.com

Match-winner Winston Reid said back-to-back Premier League victories and clean sheets would give West Ham United a 'big boost'. The New Zealand captain struck a dramatic last-gasp winner to fire the Hammers to their second home league success of the season on Saturday – a 1-0 win over bottom club Sunderland.
Reid, whose goal was the 100th of Slaven Bilic's managerial reign, came when Dimitri Payet worked a free-kick to the defender on the edge of the penalty area, where he took a touch before slamming a low, left-foot shot into the bottom corner. "Obviously I'm happy that we got the three points and we can continue to move up the table," he said. "It was really good for us. We needed this win, especially at home, because we haven't been doing well lately at home, so it was very important to get the win. "I was a bit surprised to find myself in that position. Dimi has got the ball and I fancied him more than me, so I was expecting him to shoot, but he passed it to me. I managed to get my head up and was aware of the situation, fired off a shot and it went in."

While Reid and his teammates celebrated with the vast majority of the 56,785-strong London Stadium crowd, Sunderland appealed in vain for offside against Jonathan Calleri, claiming the Argentine had impeded goalkeeper Jordan Pickford's vision. Television replays suggested otherwise, and referee Bobby Madley allowed the goal to stand. "There wasn't any talk about that after the game – I think we were just happy to get the win, obviously!" Reid revealed. "There is always going to be debate about those sorts of decisions, but fortunately it went our way. I haven't seen the footage, but I'm just happy for the win, really."

Even after two wins in succession, West Ham remain 15th in the Premier League table, but the gap between Bilic's men and the top half is now down to two points ahead of next Sunday's lunchtime trip to Everton. Three more points at Goodison Park, where the Hammers came from two goals down to win last season, and the indifferent start to the season will start to disappear in the rear-view mirror. "We need to pick up more and more points," Reid stated. "We'd like to be up near the top of the table and it's important. We've got a young squad - Edimilson is one and he came in and did very well for us in that position – so it's important that they don't feel there is pressure on them, and a lot of us senior players have been talking about that. "We've got a strong squad, we've got great belief and so it's nice to get back-to-back wins."

While the defender was naturally pleased to score his first of the season, he was equally delighted with a second clean sheet in the space of eight days.
Having secured two 1-0 wins in the Premier League, a similar result in Wednesday's EFL Cup fourth-round tie with Chelsea will do the No2 just fine. "One-hundred per cent, if there's one thing you pride yourself on as a defender, it's keeping clean sheets," he confirmed. "Prior to the Palace game, we had been conceding far too many goals than we'd have liked, so we were pleased with the last two games. "It's a team game and the most important thing for us was the three points and the big boost it has given us. Now we can move on to the next game against Chelsea."

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Young forward delighted with winner
WHUFC.com

Jahmal Hector-Ingram was left delighted after scoring the Hammers PL2 team's winner against Middlesbrough on Friday
The forward delicately lobbed the hosts' keeper before nodding home from close range
He revealed how keen he was to take the starting place opportunity with both hands

Jahmal Hector-Ingram revealed the pain suffered at the end of West Ham PL2's 1-0 victory over Middlesbrough on Friday was worth it having scored the first half winner. Terry Westley's men headed to the Riverside Stadium looking to bounce back after defeat to Aston Villa on Monday, and they did exactly that, putting in a steely performance to grind out the win. And Hector-Ingram admitted, having been a constant outlet up front, closing down every ball, he was suffering as a result after 90 minutes. He said: "I am dying right now! My hamstring is in bits! But you get the reward for working hard, so I don't mind about that. It's a long journey back, but it will be good having got the win. "I will be getting a couple of cramps on the way home, but the win makes it all the better! We've got the weekend to recover now, too. "It was a brilliant team performance. We got the three points we were looking for, so it was a good response from the lads losing against Aston Villa on Monday."

Hector-Ingram was making his first start of the season for the U23 side after impressing for the U18s throughout the campaign with five goals in seven matches.
He explained how keen he was to make an impression in the north east once he learned of his starting position. "The performance was good for me. It was an opportunity for me and I took that by scoring the winner but the main thing for the team is that we got the victory. "There is a lot of competition for the striker position in this team so when you do get an opportunity, you do have to take it with two hands. Otherwise, you won't be in the team. I want to keep making it hard for Terry to pick his team every week. "The main focus now for us is the game against West Brom on Halloween, and we just have to make sure we are fully focused on that fixture."

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Bilic - Nobody can say we didn't deserve to win
WHUFC.com

Slaven Bilic felt his side deserved to come away with all three points and praised the players character once again after Winston Reid scored a dramatic last minute winner against Sunderland.

The Hammers made it back-to-back victories for the first time since April and provided the perfect confidence boost ahead of the big London derby against Chelsea in the EFL Cup on Wednesday night.

Bilic felt the Hammers start to the game was the best football they have produced in a number of months and was pleased to see them rewarded for all their hard work with another crucial victory.

Bilic said: "It was very dramatic and an important game for both teams.

"It was not a goal from the training sessions as I thought Winston would be inside the box. It was a crucial decision from Payet and Noble to get the ball outside the box and find Reidy in a good position.

"It was a great decision from the player. You have to be a bit lucky when you score that kind of a goal and it was crucial for us.

"I thought the first half hour was the best football we have played for a long time. We were passing the ball well and were winning the second balls. We were creating chances and getting the ball to Dimi and Manu.

"We had enough chances to be two up but we couldn't score a goal. They had five good minutes before half-time but in the second half it was an open game.

"The last 15 minutes we pushed more and changed the system by adding another striker in there.

"We managed to score in the very last minute and no-body can say after the game that we didn't deserve to win it."

Bilic had special praise for youngster Edimilson Fernandes who was making his Premier League debut and says he was determined to keep faith with the same system which saw them produce such an impressive display against Crystal Palace in their last game and the move paid off once again.

Bilic added: "We never lost our energy in training. No amount of training or motivation can bring the confidence back like winning games and we have now managed to keep two clean sheets.

"We now want to build on it of course. We are looking much better now offensively and defensively.

"That is why we opted to keep the same shape because the players have good memories of the shape and even though we were missing Cresswell, we put young Fernandes in that position and he was very good throughout the whole game."

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MATCH REPORT – WEST HAM 1-0 SUNDERLAND
BY BRIAN KNOX ON 22 OCTOBER 2016 AT 6:36PM
TheWestHamWayc.co.uk

The Hammers made it back to back 1-0 victories this afternoon after Winston Reid scored a dramatic injury time winner with literally the last kick of the game as his left foot pile driver from the edge of the box flew through a melee of players, beyond Pickford and nestled in Sunderland's net.

The game looked to be heading for a draw until the New Zealand international defender popped up with a rare goal, his first since his dramatic winner against Manchester United which was the final ever goal at the Boleyn Ground.

He proved to be the hero once again and it was another crucial win for the Hammers. The victory was the first in the Premier League at the London Stadium since August and it was a moment for Slaven Bilic to remember as it was the 100th goal since he took charge of the Club.

The Hammers manager kept the same wing-back system with Swiss U21 star, Edimilson Fernandes replacing the suspended Aaron Cresswell at left wing-back. The former Sion attacking midfielder almost made an immediate impact after just five minutes when he produced some good work down the left hand side and picked out Dimitri Payet who curled a shot inches past the post. Payet was involved in the heart of the action once again on ten minutes as he broke free inside the box and saw his shot well kept out by Sunderland keeper Jordan Pickford.

The Hammers dominated the opening exchanges and were denied by the woodwork in the 26th minute as Payet's low shot cannoned back off the post. Sunderland finally managed to find a way into the game and created their first major opening on 38 minutes when Patrick van Aanholt found space just outside the area but he his effort was wide of the mark.

The Hammers started the second half poorly and within minutes of the restart Sunderland had another great chance to break the deadlock when Wahbi Khazri found himself one-on-one with Adrian but the Spanish keeper made a comfortable save diving away to his left hand side. Then Angelo Ogbonna played an excellent through ball to Simone Zaza but a horrific first touch from the Italian striker wasted an opportunity as he had beaten Kone.

Bilic brought Sofiane Feghouli, Jonathan Calleri and Ashley Fletcher into the action as he tried everything to clinch the crucial winner but it was that man Reid again that brought the Hammers faithful to their feet and clinched the much needed 3 points.

The Manager will be a lot more happier tonight, two wins in a row after rumours emerging this morning from France that the Hammers approached Rudi Garcia before he accepted the Marseille Manager's job yesterday.

West Ham: Adrian; Reid, Kouyaté, Ogbonna, Antonio (Feghouli 62); Noble, Obiang, Fernandes; Lanzini (Fletcher 83), Zaza (Calleri 68), Payet

Subs not used: Spiegel, Nordtveit, Collins, Oxford

Bookings: Fernandes

Sunderland: Pickford; Manquillo, Koné, O'Shea, Van Aanholt; Watmore (Gooch 74), Rodwell, Ndong, Pienaar (McNair 79), Khazri (Jones 85); Defoe

Subs not used: Domingues, Djilobodji, Anichebe, Honeyman

Bookings: Rodwell, N'Dong, Khazri

Referee: Bobby Madley
Attendance: 56,985

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REF WATCH – WEST HAM V SUNDERLAND – ROBERT MADLEY
BY BRIAN KNOX ON 22 OCTOBER 2016 AT 6:45PM

TheWestHamWay.co.uk
Written by Sam Roydell-Ryell

After an overdue win away at Crystal Palace last weekend, we welcomed a Sunderland team who are rooted to the bottom of the league and not showing any glimpses of improving. It was great to see Aaron Cresswell back from injury against Palace and what a difference he made to the team. It was very unfortunate and frustrating that Atkinson clearly missed contact by Cabaye on Cresswell inside the penalty area and Zaha going down too easily under minimal contact from Cresswell, resulting in two yellow cards. The decision cannot be overturned and we move on – the referee appointed for this game week 9 fixture was Robert Madley.

In a half, where West Ham didn't take advantage of their early dominance, Madley's performance was good and I felt he handed the game well. The first caution of the game went to Sunderland's Jack Rodwell after the former England international caught Manuel Lanzini with a high boot. This came after Madley played a really good advantage, which initially resulted in a West Ham corner. Fernandes shot seemed to ricochet off a Sunderland defender and Madley signed for a corner. After some protest by the Sunderland players, Madley consulted his assistant over the radio and reserved his decision and awarded a goal kick. Madley correctly held his hands up for his error, however as his assistant knew the correct decision, he should have corrected Madley a lot sooner. Ibrahim Ndong was the second name to go into Madley's notebook after a very late and poor challenge on Dimitri Payet. Madley was quick to issue a deserved yellow card and a free-kick to West Ham.

Sunderland caught West Ham napping and went on a promising attack with West Ham defenders out of position. Edimilson Fernandes was brought in to replace the suspended Cresswell in the left wingback position and brought Sunderland's Manquillo down just outside the penalty area. Madley was correct to issue Fernandes the first West Ham caution of the game. Steven Pinnaar was the final player to be cautioned in the first half after a foul, however it was more for the dissent towards the referee.

In a second half that was nerve-wracking for West Ham fans, Madley continued his good performance from the first half. After four cautions in the first half, Winston Reid was the second West Ham player in Madley's notebook after Reid caught Duncan Watmore in a promising Sunderland attack. Madley had no choice but to caution Reid for this intent to foul the Sunderland midfielder. Slaven Bilic is a very animated character at the best of times, but after Madley gave a foul against Jonathan Calleri, Madley had to speak to the West Ham manager and issue a warning for his touchline antics. Bilic was quick to accept Madley's request. There were a couple of cautions which added to Sunderland's tally in the final stages of the game, one went to Billy Jones for preventing a restart for a West Ham freekick and the other to Khazri for throwing the ball away after he felt he was fouled.

I can't remember the last time West Ham deserved to win a game and scored in final seconds of additional time. It was a brilliant strike by Winston Reid but I was interested to see whether Madley or his assistant thought that Ashley Fletcher made an obvious intent to play the ball on Reid's incoming shot in an offside position. Firstly, no West Ham players were offside including Ashley Fletcher, when the ball came through a very crowded penalty area. Secondly, the law states that a player must "clearly attempt to play a ball, which is close to him when this action impacts on an opponent" to be penalised and Fletcher did make movement in front of the goalkeeper however, my opinion is that Fletcher was moving out of the way of the incoming shot and Fletcher was originally in an onside position – so the referee couldn't have penalised him.

In my opinion, I thought that Madley had a good game and felt his decision making was particularly good – playing advantage where he could and correctly issuing cautions to the players in question. A note on West Ham; I was feeling very frustrated after 93 minutes but Winston Reid's left foot strike changed everything. We're still not the finished article, we really need to figure out the striker situation with all of our goals this season coming from other positions. Next week, we visit Goodison Park against an Everton team who have started very well this season.

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West Ham United 1-0 Sunderland
By Alex Bysouth
BBC Sport

Winston Reid scored a 94th-minute winner for West Ham at the London Stadium to condemn Sunderland to their worst start to a Premier League season. The hosts may well have had a penalty when Reid was wrestled to the ground by Javier Manquillo early on. Dimitri Payet then drew a smart save from Sunderland keeper Jordan Pickford before firing a low strike against the post after some clever footwork on the edge of the box. Wahbi Khazri had the visitors' best chance after Steven Pienaar's deflected pass put him through on goal, but his tame shot was easily saved by Adrian. Sunderland must have thought they had earned a point, but Reid turned smartly on the edge of the box from a West Ham corner to fire left-footed past Pickford. It leaves David Moyes' side bottom of the Premier League with just two points from their first nine games this season.

Home sweet home?

West Ham's tricky start to life at the London Stadium has been well documented, with Slaven Bilic's side only picking up four points from four Premier League games at their new ground before Sunderland's visit. Payet's wonder goal salvaged a point against Middlesbrough last time out in east London and eased some of the frustration the home fans have expressed since their move from the Boleyn Ground. Those claret and blue-clad supporters were growing restless as the Hammers looked to have been held by the division's bottom side, despite dominating in the first half. Moyes and Sunderland looked content to return home with a point as the former Everton and Manchester United boss threw on defensive reinforcements and watched his side drop deep into their own territory. But it was a moment of hesitation deep into injury time that caught the visitors out, as a short corner from West Ham was worked to Reid and his effort snuck through a maul of bodies in the box.

Bilic sticks to back three

Bilic opted to start with three central defenders as the Hammers recorded only their second win of the season at Crystal Palace last week, but the hosts were missing suspended left wing-back Aaron Cresswell, influential to that system, against Sunderland. The Croat stuck with a back three in Cresswell's absence, handing Edimilson Fernandes a first Premier League start, and the 20-year-old Swiss looked an adept attacking threat, managing four shots on goal and making a key pass for the hosts. On the other flank was Michail Antonio, the club's top scorer this season, and his pace and energy caused problems for the visitors with the England hopeful managing six crosses, as did his second-half replacement Sofiane Feghouli. Despite the ammunition, summer singing Simone Zaza was unable to open his West Ham account, though the Italy forward did watch an acrobatic overhead kick drop narrowly wide of Pickford's far post before the break.

Black Cats' terrible start continues

Sunderland have staged miraculous escape acts in recent seasons, but with just six goals and two points to show for his tenure so far, Moyes needs his side's fortunes to change quickly if they are to repeat that trick. They are now only the second team in top-flight history to fail to win any of their opening nine league games in consecutive seasons, with Bury the other in 1905 and 1906. Jermain Defoe's 15 goals played a big part in the Black Cats' successful survival bid last term, and the former England international has scored four of his side's six goals so far this season. But the 34-year-old touched the ball just once inside the opposition box in the first half against his old side at the London Stadium and cut an isolated figure. Moyes, who got the backing of Sunderland chief executive Martin Bain this week, sent his team out with more intent early in the second half with Khazri and Duncan Watmore posing more of a threat, though to no avail.

Man of the match - Cheikhou Kouyate
Winston Reid may have proved the match winner, but it was Cheikhou Kouyate (right) who was the rock in West Ham's back three. The Senegal international didn't lose an aerial duel, made 15 clearances and gained possession on 12 occasions.

The stats you need to know

West Ham are now unbeaten in their last seven Premier League fixtures against Sunderland.
The Hammers won back-to-back league games for the first time since April.
Only Mesut Ozil (19) has provided more Premier League assists than Dimitri Payet (16) since the start of last season.
West Ham have kept more home clean sheets against Sunderland (10) than any other opponent in Premier League history.
Sunderland are now without a league win in 10 attempts, losing seven and drawing three.

What they said

Sunderland manager David Moyes: "It was offside. It should be given offside. The referee thinks it is onside. "You can tell by the referee's movement to the linesman that he is not sure, they weren't sure but it was not a goal. "I thought the players played well. Not in the opening 20 minutes, they bossed us but we got through it and had good chances. I am very pleased with the performance but not the result."

West Ham manager Slaven Bilic speaking to BBC Sport: "It was a dramatic end. The first 25 minutes it was by far our best 25 minutes, including last season.
"We were good, sharp, created chances and we deserved to be two up. Then they came back. And in the second half they had great chances and were dangerous on the counter attack but in the last 15 minutes we pushed more and we were looking to score. "I cannot say it was a goal from the training ground. You expect Winston Reid to score a header but it was a great decision to come in on the edge of the box."

What next?

West Ham are back at the London Stadium in EFL Cup action on Wednesday, when they host rivals Chelsea. Slaven Bilic's side then visit Everton in the Premier League for the 13:30 BST kick-off on Sunday.

Sunderland go to Southampton in the EFL Cup on Wednesday, before Arsenal visit the Stadium of Light in the Premier League's early kick-off on Saturday.

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West Ham Utd 1-0 Sunderland
KUMB.com
Filed: Saturday, 22nd October 2016
By: Staff Writer

West Ham secured all three points at the Olympic Stadium against Sunderland this afternoon - with virtually the last kick of the game.

With a matter of seconds remaining on the clock, and the game already deep into injury time, Winston Reid stepped up to save West Ham's blushes and secure all three points against a (quite frankly awful) Sunderland side that has now taken just two points from their opening nine fixtures.

That it took so long for the Hammers to break the deadlock will no doubt be the cause of some concern for manager Slaven Bilic and his team. However this narrowest of victories, combined with last weekend's success at Crystal Palace means the Hammers have recorded back-to-back wins for the first time since April and, most importantly, away from immediate danger.

Although match statistics show that there were 30 shots at goal during the game, that only five were on target gives an indication of the sub-par fayre offered by both teams for much of the match. Whilst West Ham dominated the opening proceedings, all they had to show for it was a Dimi Payet's effort that hit the post.

Dimitri Payet ✔ @dimpayet17
He doesn't score often but each of his goals are important
Thank's bro 🙏🏽
Good work of the… https://www.instagram.com/p/BL4TXZzgt-1/
10:08 PM - 22 Oct 2016

Sunderland, who provided little threat throughout the game enjoyed their best spell at the beginning of the second period; Hammers 'keeper Adrian was forced to react smartly when left one-on-one right at the beginning of the half when the visitors created their best chance of the afternoon.

And they were forced to pay for the lack of ambition when Reid, who had marshalled the defence expertly throughout the preceding 94 minutes picked up a loose ball on the edge of the Black Cats' box before turning smartly and firing home - with practically the final kick of the game.

Although those two wins in eight days have lifted the Hammers three points above the drop zone, they remain 15th in the Premier League table - albeit within reach of Southampton in 8th who current have 12 points, two more than West Ham.

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West Ham 1-0 Sunderland: Winston Reid snatches last-gasp win
By James Walker-Roberts
Last Updated: 22/10/16 7:00pm
SSN

To watch Premier League action on your mobile now download the Football Score Centre on iPhone or Android
Winston Reid's last-minute goal snatched a dramatic 1-0 victory for West Ham over Sunderland at the London Stadium on Saturday.

It looked as though the Hammers were set for another frustrating result at their new home, with Dimitri Payet going closest to breaking the deadlock when he hit the post in the 27th minute.

Wahbi Khazri missed a brilliant chance for Sunderland early in the second half, and the visitors were denied a point with almost the last kick of the match as Reid fired in from the edge of the box.

The goal stood despite a question of offside and West Ham have now secured back-to-back wins for the first time this season while Sunderland remain rooted to the foot of the Premier League table with just two points to their name.

Even at such an early stage of the season the Black Cats look in deep trouble, although David Moyes will be aggrieved not to have taken a point from their visit to the capital.

The hosts, who had only won once previously in the league at the London Stadium this season, made an enforced change with the suspended Aaron Cresswell replaced by Edimilson Fernandes.

Lamine Kone and Steven Pienaar started for Sunderland, who were distinctly second best in the early stages. Payet curled an effort narrowly wide and shot at Jordan Pickford after dribbling his way into the box.

West Ham also had a couple of penalty appeals waved away before Payet went even closer in the 27th minute as he opened up space with a clever dummy and then shot against the post from just inside the box.

After weathering the storm, Sunderland eventually grew into the game and Jack Rodwell headed over from Khazri's free-kick.

Patrick van Aanholt shot over from 20 yards before the otherwise ineffective Simone Zaza saw an overhead kick fly just wide of the post.

Khazri spurned Sunderland's chance of the match early in the second half when he was played through on goal and failed to beat Adrian.

A similar opportunity presented itself to Zaza moments later but his poor first touch allowed Kone to recover.

Otherwise, West Ham largely looked laboured and aside from Fernandes shooting over from the edge of the box they struggled to break down Sunderland's compact defence.

It looked as though they would have to make do with a share of the spoils until the final minute when a corner was played to Reid just outside the area and his low shot went through a crowd of bodies - with a West Ham player seemingly in an offside position - and into the net.

Player ratings

Sunderland: Pickford (6), Manquillo (6), Kone (7), O'Shea (7), Van Aanholt (6), Watmore (6), Rodwell (6), Ndong (6), Pienaar (5), Khazri (5), Defoe (6).

Subs: Jones (5), McNair (5), Gooch (5).

West Ham: Adrian (6), Reid (8), Kouyate (6), Ogbonna (6), Antonio (5), Noble (7), Obiang (7), Fernandes (7), Lanzini (6), Zaza (5), Payet (6).

Subs: Feghouli (5), Fletcher (5), Calleri (5).

Man of the match: Winston Reid.

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Slaven Bilic labels West Ham's win over Sunderland as 'extremely important'
Last Updated: 22/10/16 6:45pm
SSN

Slaven Bilic hailed West Ham's last-gasp 1-0 victory over Sunderland at the London Stadium as an "extremely important" result.

The Hammers have struggled at their new home this season, conceding four in defeat to Watford and then losing 3-0 to Southampton.

But they secured victory against struggling Sunderland thanks to Winston Reid's strike with almost the last kick of the match.

"It was extremely important for us," Hammers boss Bilic told Sky Sports. "Nothing can lift you like a win, confidence wise.

"To get six points in two games and keep clean sheets is a big boost for us. We kept trying, kept the shape and were rewarded with the goal.

"We pushed a bit more in the last 15 minutes, changed a few things, and we just deserved it."

There was a question of whether Reid's goal should have been ruled out for offside, with a couple of players seemingly beyond the last man and blocking Jordan Pickford's view.

But Bilic added: "It's not offside, it's very difficult to see but I wanted to have a look and if you freeze the picture you can see (Jonathan) Calleri's boots were not in an offside position. I can feel for them but it wasn't offside."

The West Ham boss also hailed the quick-thinking of Dimitri Payet and Mark Noble, who took the corner short in the 94th minute before playing it to Reid on the edge of the box.

"It was a bit of an unusual way to score a goal, not a training ground combination," said Bilic. "But they made a bit of a mistake because they were all in the box and expected a cross and it was a good decision from Dimi and Mark Noble to pass it and come in to a good area without them pressing up.

"It was a great strike, unusual but very important for us."

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