West Ham secured a vital 1-0 victory at Fulham to ease their relegation fears and ease the pressure on boss David Moyes, in a game he could not afford to lose at Craven Cottage
Moyes admitted his job was on the line after the 5-1 humiliation at home to Newcastle on Wednesday but, having retained the support of co-owner David Sullivan, it was Harrison Reed's unfortunate 23rd-minute first-half own goal that proved the difference
Lacking in a focal point of real quality in the continued absence of Aleksandar Mitrovic, Carlos Vinicius fed off scraps for Fulham, but Lukasz Fabianski was barely drawn into action, with Andreas Pereira being thwarted as he attempted to round the goalkeeper as close as the hosts would come
Bernd Leno denied Danny Ings, who was immediately subbed to the annoyance of the Hammers supporters, but it would not invite a sustained period of Fulham pressure as the visitors held on for a first Premier League away win since August
Fulham have now lost four consecutive league games for the first time since April 2021 as they remain 10th in the table, while West Ham rise to 13th - three points above the relegation zone
Moyes said: "We had to defend pretty well for periods of the game but I thought we defended really well today
 It's two clean sheets in a week, two 1-0 victories in a week
 We ground it out today and found a way to get a result
"With Fulham manager Marco Silva watching on from the stands, serving the first of his two-game touchline ban, Moyes was animated and relieved at the final whistle
 The Scot lives to fight another day
Sullivan and vice-chair Karren Brady were sat in the stands at Craven Cottage, and the Hammers' hierarchy witnessed a resolute display which secured three points that were richly deserved against a tepid Fulham, who are starting to have the look of a side thinking about next season
Moyes had made five changes as he sought a response to the Newcastle debacle, but it was a moment of good fortune which decided this fraught contest
One of those alterations, Vladimir Coufal, dug out a cross to evade Antonee Robinson and, after Tim Ream had presented his clearance to Jarrod Bowen, his low centre struck the inside of Reed's heel to bamboozle Leno
An ugly game had its fitting winner, but it was a priceless moment for Moyes
"It was a frustrating afternoon for us," Silva said
 "We had almost 80 per cent possession but it's not important if you don't use it
"They played in a low block and they tried to be compact while exploiting transitions and with set-pieces
 We arrived thinking in this way, but we were so static in the first half
 We weren't dynamic and we didn't create many chances
"Ings ought to have made the second half far more comfortable when he latched onto Bowen's through ball to loft his finish onto Leno's head as he advanced at his feet, but for all of Fulham's possession, they lacked any degree of penetration
Tosin Adarabioyo headed into Fabianski's gloves after Pereira had been denied in trying to round the veteran West Ham goalkeeper - but that was as hairy as it got for the Hammers, who really ought to have put the game to bed in stoppage time when Maxwel Cornet shot straight at Leno, failing to capitalise on a mistake by Ream
Fulham are on the beach, and Moyes is still alive
"They scored through our own goal which should be disallowed because it was a clear handball from Coufal in the build-up
 Why VAR didn't check that moment, it is difficult for us as it was right in front of the linesman
"Even so, we are punished by our performance in the first half
 We looked for more creativity with our changes at half-time to become more unpredictable
 It was a better second half with two or three dangerous moments, but it was not enough for us to equalise
"The quality in our execution wasn't at the level it should be
"I only know one way [to turn results around] and that is through working hard
 It was in this way that we've had so many good performances this season so far and why we're where we are in the table
 We need to show personality on the pitch to improve
"When you're not getting results, it is normal to play without confidence but it is up to us to change it
""We nicked a goal
 The changes worked and we saw a few of the boys that have been around a while and know their jobs
 That gave us a foundation to work from
 They are really good, experienced players who I can trust
"We started with Danny [Ings] and Mic [Michail Antonio] today to see if it could give us something else
 In bits it did
"We want to probably play a more expansive game, that's the plan
 But I think you understand that when you are in this position in the league there's a way you have to play
 I think, today, the decisions we made and when we made them all worked really well
"We're really looking forward to Europe now, another chance to get to a semi-final
 We're hoping that we can do it
"Sometimes when you're not in the right position you have to find ways of winning and I thought we did that today
 We'd like to be playing a bit different
"This was a game Moyes quite simply knew he could not lose
 No matter what
 In the end, it was entirely fitting that a match all about the result would be decided in such untidy fashion
Not since a victory at Aston Villa in their second away game of the season had the travelling West Ham fans been able to celebrate three points - although history was on their side here, having won more away fixtures against Fulham than any other Premier League team
Those supporters, though, still lambasted manager Moyes with chants of 'you don't know what you're doing' during the second half, his decision to replace striker Ings with Flynn Downes greeted with derision from the away section
"I can't really answer that
 People will do that if they chose to do so," said the West Ham boss afterwards
Relegation worries eased, Moyes marched across the pitch and towards the Cottage in the far corner, affording himself time to acknowledge the travelling fans, only to see a banner which read in black and white 'Moyes Out'
Before heading down the tunnel, he looked up and gave Sullivan and Brady a thumbs up
 It was job done on the banks of the River Thames
Given how tight it is down at the bottom, West Ham cannot rest on their laurels and having earned himself a stay of execution heading into Thursday's Europa Conference League quarter-final with Gent, his decision to ring the changes paid off handsomely
Kurt Zouma made 14 clearances while his new defensive partner Angelo Ogbonna was equally superb in making 12
 It is a selection headache that Moyes would welcome, so long as his side build on this most scrappy of victories
head to relegation candidates on Saturday April 15
 Kick-off 3pm
 host in the first leg of their Europa Conference League quarter-final tie on Thursday April 13
 Kick-off 5
45pm
They return to league action three days later on Sunday April 16 at home to , live on 
 Kick-off 2pm
April 15:  (A) - Premier League, kick-off 3pmApril 22: (H) - Premier League, kick-off 12
30pmApril 25:  (A) - Premier League, kick-off 7
45pmApril 30:  (H) - Premier League, kick-off 2pm, live on May 3:  (A) - Premier League, kick-off 8pmMay 8:  (H) - Premier League, kick-off 3pmMay 13:  (A) - Premier League, kick-off 3pmMay 20:  (H) - Premier League, kick-off 3pmMay 28:  (A) - Premier League, kick-off 4
30pmApril 13: (A) - Europa Conference League quarter-finals, first leg, kick-off 5