West Ham followed up their impressive victory over Arsenal with a win against Leicester to increase the pressure on Ruud van Nistelrooy and his relegation-threatened side.
Tomas Soucek celebrated his 30th birthday with the opening goal in the first half, firing in a loose ball after Mohammed Kudus’ shot was denied.
The hosts then put the game beyond the struggling Foxes just before the break when Jarrod Bowen’s shot from a tight angle deflected in off Leicester defender Jannik Vestergaard, after Jamie Vardy’s header from a corner had hit the woodwork for the visitors.
The Foxes, who were looking to close the gap to safety to two points with a win, had made a positive start as Wilfred Ndidi saw a second-minute effort saved.
But the Hammers’ opener proved a real blow and they struggled to create pretty much anything of note after that.
The defeat leaves Van Nistelrooy’s side second-bottom of the Premier League and five points from safety.
West Ham, meanwhile, are 15th, with their back-to-back wins putting them level on points with Tottenham and Manchester United, comfortably clear of trouble.
Relegation concerns deepen for Leicester
Leicester completed one of football’s fairytales when they won the Premier League in 2015-16, but the season before they produced another memorable story by avoiding relegation against the odds.
Back then they looked destined for a return to the Championship as they sat bottom of the table by April, but seven wins from their final nine games kept them up.
Their current situation is not as dire but the team, as things stand, do not look capable of pulling off an unlikely escape.
Defending has been a real problem for the Foxes this season and West Ham’s two goals against them meant the visitors have now conceded 61 in 27 games, compared to 47 for the Hammers.
They should have defended both of West Ham’s goals better in this game, leaving two players unmarked inside the box for the first, while Bowen was then allowed to get to the loose ball first for the second.
It is now 11 defeats from the past 12 Premier League games for Leicester, who look short of confidence and ideas – far from ideal in a relegation battle.
Hammers picking up under Potter
Graham Potter won his first match in charge of West Ham when they beat Fulham 3-2 on 14 January, but results after that were disappointing as they lost three of their next four games.
But it is now back-to-back wins for the Hammers – with this victory following up the impressive defeat of Arsenal, which delivered a big blow to the Gunners’ title hopes.
Worrying for Leicester was how comfortable West Ham were.
They controlled play for the vast majority of the game, with their confident passing in contrast to a Leicester team who looked nervous in possession.
Away from relegation trouble, unlikely to finish in the top half and out of cup competitions, West Ham will look to continue their recent mini-resurgence to ensure they finish the season in encouraging form.
‘What defender wants an own goal?’
Bowen suggested afterwards that he should be awarded the goal instead of it being credited as a Vestergaard own goal.
“No defender wants an own goal,” he said.
“I shot at goal, it took a deflection and it went in. If they want to give it back, I’m more than happy. [This is my] official appeal, it’s four yards out.
“Defenders don’t want own goals on their CV and us attackers want them. I’m not begging, but from that close I don’t think you can give an own goal.”