Long before Konstantinos Mavropanos thumped home the first of his most unexpected of West Ham United braces, another member of Nuno Espirito Santo’s backline pulled off a crucial piece of defensive play inside his own penalty area.
Aaron Wan-Bissaka was back in the Hammers squad following DR Congo’s seemingly never-ending World Cup conga line. But, deemed ready only for a place on the bench, Kyle Walker-Peters reclaimed his starting spot following the FA Cup defeat by Leeds five days earlier.
It took less than two minutes for ‘KWP’ to justify Nuno Espirito Santo’s decision.
Have you ever seen a turnaroud as dramatic as Dinos? ⚽ ⚽ 🇬🇷
West Ham United's Konstantinos Mavropanos celebrates scoring his side's first goal during the Premier League match between West Ham United and Wolverhampton Wanderers at London Stadium on April 10, 2026 in London, United Kingdom.
Adam Armstrong found a pocket of space on the left-hand side of West Ham United’s penalty area. He fizzed the ball across the box, right into the so-called ‘corridor of uncertainty’; bisecting Mads Hermansen, Axel Disasi and Konstantinos Mavropanos.
Wolves have only scored 24 goals in 32 league games but, still, there was surely no chance Hugo Bueno was going to miss this. Only the superb positioning of Walker-Peters denied Bueno the opener, flicking the ball away and winning a free-kick for good measure.
Kyle Walker-Peters saved West Ham United’s skin against Wolves
When Wolves thrashed West Ham 3-0 in early-January, they tore up Nuno’s gameplan by netting the opening inside four minutes. One can only wonder, shiver down the spine territory, what would have occured at the London Stadium had Rob Edwards’ rock-bottom side siezed the lead even earlier three months on.
Kyle Walker-Peters during West Ham United v Wolverhampton Wanderers - Premier League
Photo by Mark Thompson/Getty Images
This was a night which will be remembered by Taty Castellanos’ history books brace; the third fastest in recorded Premier League history, inside 100 seconds. Dinos Mavropanos scored the most unexpected of braces himself.
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Walker-Peters’ heroic piece of defensive play right from kick-off may, therefore, be lost among the many post-match topics. But if Mavropanos’ 42nd minute header lit the fuse, it was Walker-Peters who saved the Hammers from tripping over their own feet with dynamite in their pockets.
Taty and Dinos with braces, but did anyone else stand out more?
It is no secret that back-post defending is Aaron Wan-Bissaka’s Achilles heel. Cast your mind back to the 5-1 thrashing by Chelsea in August, for a prime example of those weaknesses in full effect.
Wan-Bissaka was arguably at fault for three of the visitors’ goals. The second and third, scored by Pedro Neto and Enzo Fernandez, came about via crosses from the right, Wan-Bissaka failing to cut out either delivery.
Both moves were extremely similar to the one Wolves put together just a minute or so into the game on Friday night.
It would be perhaps unfair to suggest that the Hammers would have fallen behind, and slipped to another agonising defeat against a relegation rival, if Nuno had thrown Wan-Bissaka in at right-back.
But, hypotheticals aside, Walker-Peters deserves his flowers.
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