Rio Ferdinand declares love for West Ham but issues bleak verdict on relegation

Let us know your prediction for West Ham’s trip to Newcastle! 🤞

Our away record has been woeful this season! 😬

Indeed, while things are not decided yet, West Ham are two points from safety with just two games left to play.

While Ferdinand has previously upset West Ham fans, he has expressed his sadness at the situation.

Ferdinand praises his time at West Ham

Speaking on talkSPORT, the pundit said: “I think it’s going to be hard now. I love that club.

“That is a club where I grew up. It’s the club where I made my name. It gave me all the opportunities in football.

“Listen, I’ve got loads of memories of West Ham when I played in the first team, but some of the best memories and the most ingrained memories are when I’m on the coach journeys, on the trains and the buses to training in the rain and the coaches that have given their lives to you as a young player to make it as a pro.

Oh wow 👀 How has Tottenham’s draw with Leeds made YOU feel about the relegation battle?!

This weirdly feels like a boost?

“So I’m ingrained in that club and my brother obviously played there, my nephew’s now playing there.

“It’s an unbelievable football club and I’ll be so sad to see West Ham go down, but I do think they’re in the thick of it.

Ferdinand thinks West Ham need a miracle to stay up

Ferdinand also conceded that his former team needed a minor miracle to stay in the Premier League.

He said: “It’s going to be difficult and they’re going to need some almost miracles produced in the next couple of games.”

Though there’s little doubt that West Ham are statistical favourites to be relegated, the situation is not quite as dire as he’s painted out.

West Ham just need to beat Newcastle on Sunday and hope Chelsea beat Tottenham on Tuesday night. Neither of those results are beyond the realms of possibility and it would not be a shock to see them go in West Ham’s favour.

Then, it all comes down to the last day. West Ham host Leeds and Spurs play Everton. Anything could happen then.

It is still arguably too much to say that miracles are needed. Given Newcastle’s reasonably poor home form, the idea that West Ham could be out of the relegation zone heading into the final day of the campaign is not to be ruled out.

Ferdinand appears to be putting a lot of trust in a Spurs team who were lucky to even draw with Leeds on Monday night ahead of what look like two more difficult games than West Ham face.

A third relegation in the Premier League era is far from confirmed just yet.