West Ham’s relegation from the Premier League on the final day did not come as a surprise to anyone.
The Hammers were in the bottom three for most of the 2025/26 season after a dire start under Graham Potter.
Nuno Espirito Santo then failed to lead them to safety despite having eight months in the dugout at the London Stadium.
Most Hammers fans would agree that relegation had been coming after several years of bad decisions from the board.
However, a key statistic shows West Ham were actually unfortunate to have finished in the relegation places this season.
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West Ham finished 17th in xG-adjusted Premier League table
Following the conclusion of the 2025/26 Premier League season, Squawka have released their final xG-adjusted table.
xG (Expected Goals) is an advanced metric that measures the quality of goal-scoring chances by calculating the probability that they will result in a goal.
For example, the xG value of a penalty is around 0.76, whereas the xG of a free-kick from outside the box has an xG value of less than 0.1.
xG is often used to show which team created the better opportunities in a game and therefore deserved to win.
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Squawka have analysed the xG from every Premier League match this season and adjusted the results accordingly.
For example, West Ham (2.61 xG) vs Leeds (1.59 xG) finished 3-0 last weekend, but the rounded xG result was 3-2.
Squawka’s xG-adjusted Premier League table suggests West Ham earned two more points than they should have this season.
However, more importantly, they should have finished one position higher and not been relegated to the Championship.
West Ham’s position in xG-adjusted Premier League table
| Position | Team | Points | GD |
| 17th | West Ham | 37 | -15 |
| 18th | Sunderland | 30 | -18 |
While Burnley and Wolves deservingly finished in the bottom three, Sunderland were the most fortunate team in the league.
The Black Cats qualified for the Europa League in seventh place despite an Expected Points total of just 30.
This will likely be attributed to excellent shot-stopping and clinical finishing at a typically unsustainable rate.
From West Ham’s perspective, they should not feel too aggrieved by the xG table, as 17th place is still not good enough.
With the likes of Jarrod Bowen and Mateus Fernandes in the team, the Hammers should have been in mid-table.
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