West Ham Take ‘Small Step’ Forward with Burnley Win as Fan Protests Continue

West Ham United ended a turbulent Saturday on a positive note, securing a crucial 3–2 victory over Burnley at the London Stadium — just hours after thousands of fans held a symbolic protest demanding the resignation of chairman David Sullivan and vice-chair Karren Brady.

Fans Begin the Day with a ‘Funeral March’ Protest

Before kick-off, frustrated supporters marched through Stratford behind a hearse and coffin, symbolising what they described as the “death of the club’s identity”. The demonstration, organised by Hammers United, called for changes at board level amid growing dissatisfaction over the direction of the club.

The protests followed a difficult start to the season, and defeat to fellow strugglers Burnley could have plunged West Ham deeper into crisis. When the visitors took the lead, tensions threatened to boil over — but a spirited comeback transformed the mood.

Hammers Fight Back to Earn Crucial Win

Despite falling 1–0 behind to Zian Flemming’s header, West Ham rallied to secure back-to-back league victories for the first time this season. Goals from Callum Wilson, Tomas Soucek, and Kyle Walker-Peters sealed a 3–2 triumph that lifted them level on points with safety — only separated from the relegation zone by goal difference.

The result followed a 3–1 win over Newcastle and provided a much-needed boost for manager Nuno Espírito Santo, who endured a slow start after replacing Graham Potter.

“I’m very, very happy,” Nuno told the BBC. “I’m happy for the boys and our fans. This was a massive game for us.
The goal we conceded — the reaction was good. We’ve proved we want to change things, to be strong characters. The boys are showing that slowly.”

Performance a Mixed Bag but Signs of Progress

West Ham were inconsistent, with moments of quality mixed with poor spells. All three goals came from deflected efforts falling kindly to their scorers.

Their first attempt on target arrived in the 44th minute, when Callum Wilson headed in after Crysencio Summerville’s shot was blocked. Without that goal, the Hammers might have faced boos at half-time.

In the second half, chances were scarce until Martin Dúbravka parried shots into the paths of Soucek and Walker-Peters, who struck in the 77th and 87th minutes respectively. Josh Cullen’s late consolation came too late to spark a Burnley recovery.

The win marked the first time since March 2024 that West Ham have scored three goals in consecutive Premier League matches. Their expected goals (xG) total of 3.02 was also their best of 2025.

“I think it’s a small step,” Nuno said. “It’s another day where we’ve achieved something at London Stadium which means a lot. But we won’t get carried away.”

Speaking to Sky Sports, he added:

“It’s about trying to improve as a team. We’re showing small steps — but steps in the right direction.”

Burnley Regret Missed Opportunity

Burnley boss Scott Parker admitted his side had let the result slip through their fingers.

“We’ve let one slip here, if we’re being brutally honest,” he said. “We turned the game into what West Ham wanted — a basketball match. For 30 minutes we nullified them, but we just fell away.”

A Burnley win would have created a six-point gap between the sides; instead, the teams are now level on goal difference.

Wilson: ‘We’ve Started Sticking Together’

Striker Callum Wilson, who netted his second goal for the club since joining from Newcastle, said team unity had improved in recent weeks.

“It was a big game — we knew the magnitude of it,” he said. “We’ve started sticking together more as a group and as a team. It wasn’t pretty today, but a win is a win. It’s something to build on.”

Nuno has now overseen two wins and one draw in six matches, compared with Potter’s record of five defeats from six before his dismissal.

The result moves West Ham to 10 points from 11 games, a significant turnaround from the four points they had after nine matches — a tally no Premier League side has ever survived with in the past decade.

Protests Show No Signs of Ending

Despite the win, the protests against Sullivan and Brady are expected to continue. Many fans remain frustrated by the board’s management of the club, which they have controlled since 2010.

Although West Ham won the UEFA Europa Conference League in 2022–23, ending a 43-year wait for silverware, supporters feel the club has regressed since.

Nuno is already the third manager since David Moyes departed at the end of the 2023–24 campaign, following the short-lived tenures of Julen Lopetegui and Graham Potter.

Another longstanding grievance remains the move from the beloved Upton Park to the 62,500-seater London Stadium, originally built for the 2012 Olympics.

This season alone has seen multiple fan demonstrations:

20 September: organised protests before the 2–1 defeat to Crystal Palace (Potter’s final match).

20 October: thousands boycotted the 2–0 loss to Brentford, Nuno’s first game in charge.

3 November: fans staged a sit-in protest after the match.

This latest protest — a funeral march through Stratford — reportedly drew between 2,000 and 8,000 fans, depending on the source.

In a statement, Hammers United said:

“Massive thank you to all the supporters, young and old, who took part in the protest march — an overwhelming success. Thousands of you came out and you were clearly heard! Come on you Irons!”

While the win over Burnley lifted spirits, it is unlikely to halt the ongoing unrest among supporters.