West Ham 3-0 Southampton: Happy Hammers See Off Sorry Saints in Relegation Six Pointer

West Ham have boosted their fight against relegation thanks to a 2-0 home victory over fellow strugglers Southampton.

A five-minute salvo from Joao Mario - his first for the club - and Marko Arnautovic's double helped fire the Irons four places up the Premier League as they put the 3-0 Burnley defeat on home soil to bed.

The Saints, meanwhile, remain rooted in the bottom three after an insipid showing in the capital and need a miracle to survive now.

Michail Antonio's return to the West Ham first-team lasted just six minutes as the injury-plagued attacker fell victim to a thigh strain, but that lengthy stoppage didn't prove to be a blow to the hosts as Mario broke the deadlock not long after.

Cheikhou Kouyate led a counter down his side's right flank after robbing Mario Lemina of the ball deep inside his own half and, after finding Mario infield, the on-loan Inter man thundered a drive past Alex McCarthy to the delight of the home faithful.

Marko Arnautovic spurned a glorious chance to bag a quick second, but the Austrian's effort curled just wide of the post as West Ham smelled blood.

He wasn't to be denied 60 seconds later though as, at the second attempt after McCarthy had parried his header from Mario's cross, Arnautovic reacted quickest to slot home his team's second.

West Ham were looking good value for their lead. Southampton, by contrast, looked like a team devoid of confidence and ideas after those early goals against them, and the game was effectively over on the stroke of half-time as Arnautovic turned home Arthur Masuaku's teasing centre at the back stick.

Angelo Ogbonna twice denied Charlie Austin from testing Joe Hart with blocks on vicious shots, while Arnautovic wasn't far away from notching his hat-trick with a right foot curler landing wide of the upright.

Dusan Tadic and Arnautovic traded chances as the game laboured towards its conclusion after a less-than-enthralling second half.

But David Moyes' men had done enough to quell the dissent from three weeks ago, and brush aside the ugly scenes that marred their last game at the London Stadium and off the field concerns about their home stadium.