West Ham secured back-to-back Premier League wins for the first time since November by beating Sunderland 3-1 to close the gap on safety but Man United will have been interested spectators.
If the win at Spurs brought West Ham back from the dead, victory over Sunderland has fully revived their bid for Premier League survival.
But one West Ham star was so good it may eventually come at a cost with the eyes of Manchester United casting their gaze over east London.
Like Man United, much of West Ham’s recruitment has been seriously questionable in recent years.
It is one of the major reasons the Hammers find themselves in the thick of a relegation battle.
That is a battle the Irons now have real hope of winning thanks to one of their best signings for years.
10/10 West Ham star shows why Man United want him
Eyebrows were raised when West Ham paid £40m to bring Mateus Fernandes in from Championship Southampton in the summer.
The Hammers actually beat a host of clubs to Fernandes, including Manchester United.
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Describe this goal in just one word 🔥
I’ll start: ‘rocket’
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Fernandes has been a revelation for the east Londoners this season.
Head and shoulders West Ham’s Hammer of the Year so far, the Portuguese is reportedly seen as a key player for next summer’s World Cup by Roberto Martinez.
The 21-year-old is also seen as a potential key player by West Ham’s Premier League rivals Manchester United.
Mateus Fernandes celebrates his brilliant goal for West Ham against Sunderland
Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images
This week it was claimed Man United want Fernandes with confirmation that Casemiro is leaving and many Red Devils fans feel Manuel Ugarte needs upgrading.
West Ham’s top brass laughed off suggestions Fernandes could be sold to Man United in January when approached by Hammers News this week.
But selling Fernandes in the summer is a different matter if West Ham are relegated.
Even if they are not, with Man United and Real Madrid reportedly interested, it may be tough to hold on to a player of Fernandes’ outstanding quality and ability.
The 10/10 West Ham star showed why Man United want him in the crucial Sunderland win.
Despite the Hammers’ struggles, Fernandes has emerged as the bright spark and is their standout performer this season.
Brilliant Fernandes can keep Hammers up but can they keep him
The Hammers will obviously hope they can keep him long term but “Manchester United are positioned to make a move if West Ham drop into the Championship” according to Caught Offside.
Man United would have been keeping a close eye on Fernandes’ performance and they – like West Ham fans packing out the London Stadium – would not have been disappointed in the slightest.
Safety is in sight 😍 Who was your MOTM?!
A graphic showing the full-time score between West Ham and Sunderland (3-1) in the Premier League on 24/01/2026.
Credit: Getty Images/Rob Newell – CameraSport
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Fernandes put in a stunning all-action performance to underline just why he is so coveted.
The Hammers ace had 67 touches, made 42 successful passes from 47 attempted, eight of his nine long passes were accurate, he won a phenomenal seven out of seven ground duels, made five tackles, won possession back four times and had a successful take-on,
The cherry on the cake, though, was a long-range strike from right out of the top drawer.
Fernandes played the pass of the match with a razor sharp, pin-point ball to set Crysencio Summerville free over the top.
Crysencio Summerville celebrates after scoring for West Ham against Sunderland.
Photo by Rob Newell – CameraSport via Getty Images
He then followed his own pass 35 yards up the pitch, received the ball back and smashed it into the top corner to make it 3-0.
Somehow he almost bettered that goal with another strike from even further out in the closing stages, but the shot cannoned off the underside of the bar and was deemed not to have crossed the line.
Fernandes’ goal and performance was key to West Ham’s win after a beautiful first ever headed goal for Crysencio Summerville from a Jarrod Bowen cross and a penalty from the captain meant Sunderland getting one back did not cause as much angst inside the London Stadium as it might have.
For now all that matters is that Fernandes’ performances are helping West Ham fight to stay in the Premier League.
But there will be questions to answer over his future in the summer.
And Man United are almost certain to come knocking if Fernandes keeps up this level of performance.
Word is that West Ham would not accept a penny less than £80m if they do survive.
West Ham player ratings vs Sunderland:
Alphonse Areola, 8/10: The big Frenchman has been one of West Ham’s best players since Nuno Espirito Santo’s arrival. Areola was not overly busy against the Black Cats, but he made two crucial stops at pivotal moments of this game. The first to tip over a vicious long-range effort when the scores were at 0-0. The second was after Sunderland had got one back and Areola reacted quickly to somehow keep out a freak mishit cross which was going right in the top corner.
Aaron Wan-Bissaka, 8/10: Brilliant performance from Aaron Wan-Bissaka at both ends. He was everywhere and got up and down the pitch to thwart and support in perfect balance.
Konstantinos Mavropanos, 7.5/10: Handled Brian Brobbey brilliantly for the most part but lost him for Sunderland’s goal. The big Greek cannot seem to get through a game without making a costly error. But credit where it is due, Konstantinios Mavropanos has been much-improved since keeping his place in the team under Nuno.
Jean-Clair Todibo, 8.5/10: Speaking of improvement under Nuno, nobody has shown more of that than Jean-Clair Todibo. The French centre-back has been excellent of late and this was another assured, classy display. Todibo is becoming a key player and will need to stay fit if West Ham are to avoid relegation.
Ollie Scarles, 7.5/10: Young Ollie Scarles has been much-improved since his nightmare against Fulham. This was another excellent display from the Academy graduate. He unnecessarily dived in on the touchline which led to Sunderland’s goal and saw him subbed off. But Scarles played a huge part in the win, not least winning the penalty from which Bowen made it 2-0.
Tomas Soucek, 7.5/10: Hard-working, selfless, disciplined, economical. This was typical Tomas Soucek and he was so key to the victory on and off the ball without doing anything hugely significant in any one moment.
Mateus Fernandes, 10/10: The match report above – and interest from Manchester United and Real Madrid – says it all. Man of the match and deservedly so.
Mateus Fernandes' game by numbers vs. Sunderland:
67 touches
42/47 successful passes
8/9 accurate long balls (most)
7/7 ground duels won (most)
5 tackles
4x possessions won
1/1 successful take-ons
1 goal
What a strike. 💫 pic.twitter.com/x9EClBgDO6
— Squawka (@Squawka) January 24, 2026
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Jarrod Bowen, 9.10: An assist and a goal means Bowen is now West Ham’s all-time leading goal contributor with 103, two more than Michail Antonio. Ran his heart out as always and looks re-energised by having some help up front.
Crysencio Summerville, 8.5/10: Brilliant again from the flying Dutchman as he scored a wonderful header Andy Carroll would have been proud of. His speed on the break and trickery was always going to be key for West Ham but now he is adding that all-important end product – hopefully at just the right time.
Pablo and Taty Castellanos, 7/10: If West Ham fans are honest, neither Pablo nor Taty Castellanos look like they are up to much as players. Pablo in particular looks like a Championship standard player at best. But they both work their socks off for the team and press like mad men and what a difference that has made. It just shows there is no substitute like hard work. West Ham fans always say they just want to see players who care and leave every last bead of sweat on the pitch. Pablo and Taty do that every game and it is making a big difference.
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