David Moyes hopes West Ham have turned a corner after finally beating bogey side Brentford 4-2.

On a night of firsts, Jarrod Bowen scored a first career hat-trick to ease the pressure on boss Moyes after a rotten run of eight matches without a win.

The Hammers won their first match of 2024, with Bowen scoring his first goals since before Christmas and becoming the first Hammers player to hit a treble at the London Stadium.

It means West Ham, for all the talk of their poor form and Moyes’ future, are back up to eighth and in the mix for Europe again.

“Most teams have difficult periods in the Premier League. Manchester City have, Liverpool have, so West Ham are certainly going to be no different,” said Moyes.

“We’ve struggled to get our best team out, but overall if we can get our better players out there we can compete with most teams.”

Bowen scored twice inside the opening seven minutes before Neal Maupay pulled one back for the Bees, who had beaten West Ham in all five of their previous Premier League meetings.

Bowen headed his third midway through the second half and Emerson Palmieri hit a 20-yard rocket before Yoanne Wissa pulled another back.

“I’m really pleased for Jarrod, his performances have gone unnoticed as we’ve not been playing well,” added Moyes.

“Tonight it happened for him, his all-round play, the way he was working, he was a threat all night and hopefully the goals will get him back in (England manager) Gareth (Southgate’s) thinking.

“If you can play wide and you’re a goalscorer you will be of interest to the international manager.”

Maupay, Brentford’s premier wind-up merchant, was seen having a heated discussion with Hammers coach Kevin Nolan as the teams came back out of the tunnel for the second half.

“I actually didn’t know who the row was with, I thought maybe it was with the fourth official. I didn’t see it so I can’t really tell you anything about that,” said Moyes.

Brentford, already plunged deeper into the relegation scrap earlier on Monday following Everton’s points deduction being reduced from 10 to six, suffered another defeat – their 12th in 15 matches since beating West Ham at home in November.

“Today we didn’t hit a good level individually and collectively. West Ham hit a good level, Bowen was unplayable, Emerson hit the top corner and we lost 4-2,” was boss Thomas Frank’s blunt assessment.

“I need to watch the game back because one of the things we’ve been good at is consistent performances. There are very few games where we don’t perform to a certain level and this was only the third this season we’ve been below our level.

Asked whether the Everton situation had an effect, Frank replied “Absolutely not.

“I think right now I’m very irritated with our performance, that’s the main focus.”

Phil Foden believes the Premier League title race will go to the wire this season.

The England midfielder scored a hat-trick in Manchester City’s 3-1 win at Brentford on Monday night.

It was a potentially pivotal victory which lifted City above Arsenal into second place, two points behind leaders Liverpool with a game in hand.

“It’s going to be tight one. Liverpool and Arsenal are two top teams doing really well,” said Foden.

“They are going to push us until the end so we have to try and not drop points and try to win all of our games really.”

City fell behind against the run of play when Neal Maupay fired Brentford into the lead.

But Foden finally beat inspired Bees goalkeeper Mark Flekken to haul his side level before the interval.

The 23-year-old headed them in front early in the second half from Kevin De Bruyne’s cross, and then completed a stylish treble to ensure City’s title destiny is firmly in their own hands.

The treble winners also trailed in away matches against Everton and Newcastle recently, but Foden says they are beginning to show their mettle by coming back to win each time.

“Resilience. We keep proving it season after season,” he told the club website.

“We keep surprising everyone by keeping our standards high and it’s down to the manager and this fantastic group of players.

“It’s the togetherness, when things aren’t going right, to bounce back.”

Nerves are starting to jangle at Brentford, who have lost seven of their last eight matches and lie just three points above the relegation zone.

The fixture list does not offer much respite with City – again – Liverpool and Arsenal all on the schedule in the next few weeks.

But boss Thomas Frank is looking no further ahead than Saturday’s trip to Wolves.

“I’m always looking just one game ahead; that’s where our maximum focus is,” he said.

“It’s the same top focus on the next game. Every game we will have a very good chance to win it and that will be the same on Saturday.”

James Maddison and Neal Maupay were embroiled in a war of words after the Brentford forward mocked the Tottenham midfielder’s goal celebration.

Maupay opened the scoring in the 15th minute at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Wednesday night and celebrated by throwing a dart alongside Ivan Toney, mimicking the move Maddison and Spurs team-mate Son Heung-min have done this season.

That annoyed big darts fan Maddison, who had a heated exchange with Maupay on the goalscorer’s way back to the centre circle.

The England international had the last laugh though, with goals from Destiny Udogie, Brennan Johnson and Richarlison securing a 3-2 win for Spurs.

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A post shared by James Maddison (@madders)

Maddison told TNT Sports: “He’s not scored enough goals of his own to have his own celebration so he’s copied mine.”

Maddison’s comments irked Maupay, who responded on Instagram after the game mocking his opponent’s relegation with Leicester last season.

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A post shared by Neal Maupay (@nealmaupay)

The Frenchman wrote: “Went a bit early with that one.

“Gutted we couldn’t get the win. More goals and less relegations in my career than James Maddison. We go again monday bees.”

Ange Postecoglou was pleased Tottenham regained their composure to storm back to earn a crucial 3-2 home win over Brentford but told both sets of players to enter the UFC ring if they want to focus on grappling over goals.

Spurs were sluggish in the first half and trailed to Neal Maupay’s 15th-minute opener, which saw him mock James Maddison’s darts celebration and appeared to be the catalyst for a fiery contest between the London rivals.

Whatever Postecoglou said at half-time did the trick though with Tottenham scoring twice in 72 seconds through Destiny Udogie and substitute Brennan Johnson before Richarlison made it three goals in eight second-half minutes when he steered home with 56 minutes on the clock.

Ivan Toney set up a grandstand finish when he pounced on Udogie’s error to score in front of England boss Gareth Southgate, but Spurs held on to leapfrog Aston Villa and reclaim fourth spot following a chaotic encounter.

Asked if Maupay’s darts celebration had fired up his team, Postecoglou replied: “I hope not because that’s exactly what I’m talking about.

“I’m not a fan of it. I don’t like the whole bravado, pushing people around. If you’re that brave about things, my players and their players, get into a UFC cage and I’ll see how brave they are.

“We’re out there to play football and that’s what I want our guys to do, focus on playing football and they shouldn’t get motivated by things that aren’t really that important to us.

“Like I said, we got sucked in first half. Second half was better.

“I think we started the game well, started with good intensity and good tempo, obviously they score and then we lost our way.

“We lost focus. I was a bit frustrated with our inability to stay disciplined, just too many stops and starts, it kind of plays into their hands, lots of set pieces and throw ins.

“We spent more time talking to the referee than playing the game. I was a bit frustrated we lost our real clear focus.

“Second half, I think for 25-30 minutes we were outstanding, scored three great goals and probably should have had a couple more.”

Spurs started on the front foot but were rocked when Udogie gave away possession to Christian Norgaard, who sent Toney away and while Guglielmo Vicario denied him, Maupay was on hand to bundle home and score for a fourth consecutive match.

Tottenham got sucked into Brentford’s game-plan after with the rest of the first 45 stop-start and containing plenty of melees, but a double substitution at the break inspired the hosts’ comeback with Johnson and Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg introduced.

Udogie slotted home after a slick one-two with Werner, who then set up Johnson at the back post in the 49th-minute.

When Richarlison fired in for his seventh league goal in as many matches, after Maddison’s shot had been blocked, Spurs were on track for three points but another poor Udogie pass allowed Toney to tee up a dramatic finale in N17.

Maddison was forced off late on with cramp, but Postecoglou’s side survived seven minutes of stoppage-time to return to the top four.

Opposite number Thomas Frank stoked the fire further after full time when he questioned why Tottenham had allowed Maupay’s darts celebration to irritate them.

“If that’s what’s irritating them, then they have a problem,” Frank said.

“Is that fair enough? If they are talking about darts celebrations winding them up, then I think they have an issue, personally.”

On Postecoglou’s UFC suggestion, Frank added: “Yeah, I agree. Just in general concentrate on playing football.”

Youngster Conor Bradley registered his first Liverpool goal and two assists as the Premier League leaders thumped Chelsea 4-1 at Anfield to go five points clear at the top.

The 20-year-old right-back fired into the bottom corner in the 39th minute to double the Reds’ lead having earlier provided the pass that led to Diogo Jota’s opener midway through the first half.

After Darwin Nunez sent a penalty against the post in first-half stoppage-time – one of four times he hit the woodwork – the advantage was extended in the 65th minute when Dominik Szoboszlai headed in from Bradley’s cross.

Christopher Nkunku replied before Luis Diaz wrapped things up for Jurgen Klopp’s men as they made it 15 league matches unbeaten, and four successive wins, in their first top-flight outing since the German’s announcement that he is to step down as boss at the end of the season.

A miserable evening for Mauricio Pochettino’s Chelsea ended a three-match winning run as they stayed 10th.

Manchester City, who have played a game fewer than Liverpool, returned to second place with their fourth league victory on the bounce, beating struggling Burnley 3-1 at the Etihad Stadium.

Julian Alvarez netted twice on his 24th birthday and Rodri also got on the scoresheet before top-scorer Erling Haaland make his comeback from injury as a 71st-minute substitute.

Ameen Al-Dakhil netted a stoppage-time consolation for second-bottom Burnley, managed by ex-City captain Vincent Kompany, as Pep Guardiola’s treble-winners went above Arsenal on goal difference.

Tottenham moved into the top four after a flurry of goals early in the second half helped them come from behind to beat Brentford 3-2 at home.

Neal Maupay’s effort for the Bees on the quarter-hour mark was cancelled out three minutes into the second half by Destiny Udogie.

Brennan Johnson then put Spurs ahead a minute later, with Richarlison adding a further goal for the hosts seven minutes on from that.

Ivan Toney subsequently reduced the deficit in the 67th minute but Ange Postecoglou’s team emerged with the three points to leapfrog Aston Villa in the table.

Tottenham moved back into the Champions League places after three goals in eight second-half minutes fired them to a chaotic 3-2 win at home to Brentford.

Spurs were sluggish in the first half and trailed to Neal Maupay’s 15th-minute opener but Ange Postecoglou’s half-time team talk seemingly did the trick.

Destiny Udogie and substitute Brennan Johnson scored within 72 seconds of each other at the start of the second period before Richarlison grabbed his seventh goal in his last seven Premier League games.

There was still time for Ivan Toney to score again on his second appearance since his return from a betting ban but Tottenham held on to leapfrog Aston Villa and reclaim fourth spot.

Spurs were eager to bounce back after exiting the FA Cup last Friday and James Maddison was handed a start but Brentford also had their returning hero involved with Toney leading the line again.

While all eyes were on Toney, it was the Bees’ other forward who broke the deadlock.

Udogie gave away possession to Christian Norgaard who sent Toney clear and while goalkeeper uglielmo Vicario thwarted the England international, Maupay was on hand to bundle in to score for a fourth consecutive match.

Maupay and Toney celebrated by mimicking Maddison’s dart throw celebration but it was a deserved opener after Mads Roerslev had a goal ruled out for offside minutes earlier.

Postecoglou’s side initially reacted well to going behind with Timo Werner testing Mark Flekken after a fine Rodrigo Bentancur run before Werner headed wide from a Pedro Porro corner.

Richarlison then flashed an effort past the post from range but Spurs started to get sucked into Brentford’s gameplan that has earned them multiple wins at Chelsea and success at Man City during the past two seasons.

Frustration began to boil over at the away side’s pedestrian pace at set-pieces and the Bees nearly doubled their advantage when Ethan Pinnock backheeled wide after another dangerous ball into Tottenham’s penalty area.

Dejan Kulusevski and Maupay were booked by David Coote for a shoving match soon after before Vicario punched away a Toney header to ensure it was 1-0 at the break.

Postecoglou made a double change at half-time with Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg and Johnson introduced.

Werner and Udogie lacked cutting edge in the first half but combined to equalise three minutes into the second half.

Udogie carried the ball forward, played a quick one-two with Werner and, after his first effort had been blocked by Pinnock, he was on hand to slot home to make it 1-1.

The Brentford players had barely got back into position when Tottenham grabbed another.

Kulusevski sent Werner away and the RB Leipzig loanee showed a clinical edge with a fine ball to the back post where substitute Johnson tapped in.

Johnson celebrated by copying Maddison’s darts celebration and Richarlison followed suit in the 56th minute.

Tottenham were at their free-flowing best now with Udogie finding Maddison, who cut back and had a shot blocked by Pinnock but Richarlison was on hand to steer home.

Brentford remained a threat and after Toney had sent two efforts wide, he made it third time lucky in front of England manager Gareth Southgate with 67 minutes played.

It was another gift from Udogie, who failed to look up and sent his pass back straight to Toney and he rifled into the corner to set up a grandstand finish.

Maddison’s night ended early with what appeared to be cramp before the Bees created one final chance but Vicario tipped over Josh Dasilva’s close-range volley to earn Spurs a precious three points.

Ivan Toney may have been the centre of attention for Brentford but boss Thomas Frank was eager to single out another striker after the 3-2 victory over Nottingham Forest.

Toney’s cheeky free-kick, on his return from an eight-month ban for breaching betting rules, set the Bees on their way to a first win in five matches.

But it was Neal Maupay’s well-taken turn and shot which secured a much-needed three points after Forest had made it 2-2.

“No one can do anything on their own in life, if you want to achieve something big, you can’t be alone,” said Frank.

“Ivan is one 11th of the team and if the 10 others are not performing, it doesn’t help. We need them all to perform together.

“Another one to highlight is Neal Maupay. The way he took his winning goal was very good. And the way he has come into the club is fantastic. We know what he is capable of, but five goals and three assists is impressive.

“It’s clear that they have got an eye for each other and they connect well. I like it.”

Toney’s strike, after rolling the ball from its original spot to find a gap between the wall and the near post, cancelled out a fine volley from Danilo.

Ben Mee then headed Brentford in front and Chris Wood responded in kind for Forest before Maupay’s 68th-minute winner.

Wolves boss Nuno Espirito Santo, who felt Toney’s goal should have been disallowed, said: “The boys were organised, we scored and had good momentum. The attitude was excellent, with fighting spirit and togetherness.

“But mistakes dictate the result. The result is frustrating, but the performance was good.

“I think we played well. We must be proud of the way we did things, even though we lost the game. We are short of offensive options.”

Boss Gary O’Neil insisted Wolves must maintain their focus after booking an FA Cup Black Country derby against West Brom.

Matheus Cunha’s penalty saw off Brentford 3-2 after extra time on Tuesday and sent Wolves into the fourth round.

Nelson Semedo and Nathan Fraser twice hit back for the hosts after goals from Nathan Collins and Neal Maupay in an entertaining replay.

Wolves now go to The Hawthorns on January 28 for the first Black Country derby in three years – and first with fans in attendance since 2012.

“As soon as we walked off I was thinking about Brighton (in the Premier League). I understand fans will be excited, it will be a big atmosphere, it hasn’t been played with fans for a while,” O’Neil said.

“I can’t wait to lead the team down there and see if we can progress again. There’s a Premier League game coming up and I have a very small tired group to do some work with before we go to Brighton.

“I have mixed feelings about the performance but I’m delighted with the win. The lads have worked unbelievably hard over the two ties. We’ve talked about taking the FA Cup seriously, we went down to 10 men at Brentford and tonight got a bit awkward for us.

“The players deserve credit for how they have approached the whole tie. We gave Brentford a bit of a lift by giving them two crazy goals.”

Collins, who joined Brentford from Wolves for £23million in the summer, opened the scoring after 13 minutes when he prodded in after Kristoffer Ajer’s shot was saved.

Semedo and Pablo Sarabia went close before Semedo levelled after 36 minutes when he tapped in after Thomas Strakosha saved his initial header.

Back came Brentford, though, and Maupay restored their lead six minutes into the second half after a VAR check for offside.

Yet Wolves equalised again with 17 minutes left, Fraser drilling into the corner three minutes after coming on.

It set up extra time and Shandon Baptiste had a shot turned on to the post by Jose Sa before Cunha won it in stoppage time of the first period when Pedro Neto was tripped in the box.

Brentford will now have Ivan Toney available when his eight-month suspension for betting breaches ends on Wednesday.

Boss Thomas Frank said: “It’s massive, no doubt. It’s like signing a Premier League striker who can score 20 goals because he’s proved it.

“Every team would be happy to sign a quality player like him. Ivan is a top player but he’s also very good at making the whole team better.

“Tonight we did a lot of things right. The first half was a bit direct from our side. I was very pleased with the second half and in extra time. In general we put a lot of effort into the game and we could have won.

“The game was decided by a penalty which, in my opinion, is not there. Ben (Mee) clearly hit the ball into Neto’s feet. It’s difficult to make a call but unfortunately I can’t alter that.”

Wolves set up an FA Cup derby showdown with West Brom after a battling extra-time win over Brentford.

Matheus Cunha’s penalty sent Gary O’Neil’s side through to the fourth round as the hosts eventually sealed a 3-2 replay victory at Molineux.

Wolves hit back through Nelson Semedo and Nathan Fraser in normal time after Nathan Collins and Neal Maupay twice gave the visitors the lead.

But Cunha’s extra-time spot kick booked a Black Country derby at the Hawthorns, the first in three years, on January 28.

The Bees will be left with a blank weekend but will at least have Ivan Toney available having missed him during a barren winter, during which they have won once since the start of November.

The striker completes his eight-month ban for betting breaches on Wednesday.

The 1-1 draw in the initial tie ended a five-game losing streak for the Bees and confidence still looked low until they scored against the run of play after 13 minutes.

Wolves had been in the ascendancy but were caught when Kristoffer Ajer wriggled goalside of Matt Doherty.

His fierce effort was parried by Jose Sa but, when the ball was played back in, Maupay’s shot was blocked and Collins bundled the ball in from six yards.

It was part redemption for Collins who endured a nightmare against his former club in the Premier League last month, gifting them three goals in a 4-1 defeat.

It failed to deflate Wolves, though, and they went close to a leveller after half an hour.

Cunha cross found the unmarked Semedo and, with Thomas Strakosha stranded, the defender’s shot was blocked by Brentford’s massed ranks on the line.

The ball ran for Pablo Sarabia but he could only put his effort into the side netting.

Yet the hosts did not have to wait long for a leveller six minutes later when Semedo reached Cunha’s flighted cross, his header was parried by Strakosha but he had the easiest of tasks of tapping in the rebound.

It should have given Wolves the extra momentum but they were behind again six minutes after the break.

Keane Lewis-Potter’s cross caused problems on the edge of the box and when the ball ran to Maupay he smashed in high from eight yards. The striker was initially ruled offside but, after a two-minute VAR check, the goal was given.

Maupay has scored just four goals this season – and only five since February 2022 – with two coming against Wolves after his strike in the original game.

Brentford were dreaming of the fourth round, which they had only gone beyond once since 2006, and Mikkel Damsgaard curled a free kick at Sa.

But the tie continued to twist and Wolves levelled again with 18 minutes left when substitute Fraser, on for just three minutes, drilled into the corner.

A minute later the forward should have put the hosts ahead only for Strakosha to pull off a wonderful close-range stop.

From then extra time loomed and Sa turned Shandon Baptiste’s effort onto the post soon after the restart.

But Wolves snatched a deserved win in stoppage time of the first period when Cunha converted from the spot after Pedro Neto had been tripped.

A rocket from Tommy Doyle kept Wolves in the FA Cup despite playing with 10 men for 81 minutes at Brentford.

Wanderers lost Joao Gomes to an early red card and were trailing to Neal Maupay’s first-half goal when Doyle struck from 20 yards to secure a 1-1 draw and a replay.

In a niggly encounter, Gomes was given his marching orders for chopping down Bees captain Christian Norgaard.

But Wolves could easily point to a similar challenge from Mikkel Damsgaard on Doyle which went unpunished.

Brentford were looking for a measure of revenge for the 4-1 defeat they were dealt by the same opposition in the Premier League nine days earlier.

They suffered a collective defensive meltdown in that loss and the nerves were hardly settled when goalkeeper David Strakosha, making only his third appearance of the season, passed the ball straight to Wolves forward Matheus Cunha.

The Brazilian managed to round Strakosha but ran into defender Mathias Jorgensen, who cleared the ball over his own crossbar.

Moments later Wolves found themselves a player light after Gomes caught Norgaard on the heel with his studs and was shown a straight red card by referee Tony Harrington.

It was a further injury blow for already-depleted Brentford with Denmark midfielder Norgaard unable to continue.

Former Wolves defender Nathan Collins, who was directly culpable for two of his old side’s goals in last week’s horror show, almost made amends at the right end of the pitch with a shot which curled narrowly over.

Then Bees midfielder Josh Dasilva, making his first appearance since suffering a hamstring injury in August, tested Wanderers keeper Jose Sa with a low, skidding drive before the hosts went ahead five minutes before half-time.

After Wolves failed to clear a Mathias Jensen free-kick, the ball ricocheted to the feet of Maupay who rifled it home from eight yards for his third goal of the season.

After the break Damsgaard’s shot was well blocked by Sa and Dasilva hit the side-netting before, almost out of nowhere, Wolves equalised.

A short corner was worked by Pedro Neto to Doyle on the edge of the area, with the England Under-21 midfielder taking a touch before lashing the ball left-footed into the top corner.

It was Doyle’s first goal for Wolves and he had a taste for more, only this time he cracked another drive straight into the face of Jensen, who had to go off after a concussion check.

Brentford could have won it late on but substitute Myles Peart-Harris side-footed wide and Sa saved Keane Lewis-Potter’s header from point-blank range.

A melee at the end of the match suggested these two teams are pretty sick of the sight of each other, which could at least make for a spicy replay in just over a week.

Thomas Frank said he is not surprised with Neal Maupay after the French striker scored for Brentford during their 3-1 home win over Luton in the Premier League.

Maupay scored his second goal of the season since his loan move from Everton in the summer when he finished from close range past Hatters goalkeeper Thomas Kaminski to open the scoring in the 49th minute.

Ben Mee and Shandon Baptiste also netted for the home side in the second half, either side of Jacob Brown’s 56th-minute reply for Luton.

Afterwards, Bees boss Frank lauded the influence of striker Maupay, who has returned to Gtech Community Stadium after leaving the club in 2019 for Brighton.

“For me I’m not surprised (about the goal),” Frank said. “We were sure that he’ll do well for us because we know him well and he can score goals.

“He’s had to get back into it and in the last weeks he’s played really good. I’m pleased it’s paying off for him.

“He scores goals. That’s a big thing. He’s a good pressing player and link up player when he drops down and finds a solution. As a mentality character he’s good for the group and drives the group.”

Frank’s injury issues continued, with Kristoffer Ajer replaced by Saman Ghoddos in the starting line-up after the central defender suffered a foot injury in the warm-up.

The Danish manager credited the players who stepped up after Brentford bounced back from last week’s late 1-0 home loss to Arsenal.

He continued: “I’m very happy with them. Vitaly Janelt is one of our flexible players (starting at left-back) but Saman stepped in and looked like he’d played at right-back for years.

“It’s incredible that we can turn around with the amount of injuries we have. We have four full-backs out. Big credit to the players.”

Luton manager Rob Edwards was disappointed with how his side started the second half.

He explained: “I felt we gave some early Christmas presents away in the second half and I feel they didn’t have to work too hard for their goals. They had control and they deserved the win.

“We had gone away from giving gifts away – and we had done that in the first couple games of the season.”