An afternoon of Molineux mayhem saw West Ham United mount an amazing second-half recovery to claim a wonderful win over Wolverhampton Wanderers.
 
Pablo Sarabia’s 33rd-minute penalty had given the hosts a deserved interval lead following a toothless first-half display by the visitors.
 
But the rejuvenated Hammers mounted a spectacular recovery after the break as Lucas Paquetá levelled from the spot before James Ward-Prowse put David Moyes men ahead when he scored direct from a corner with half-a-dozen minutes remaining. 
 
Still there was late drama, when Maximilian Kilman’s stoppage-time header was ruled out for offside by referee Tony Harrington following a pitch-side review.
 
“I thought the two teams must have changed shirts at half-time!” smiled the relieved Hammers boss, who had made just one change following Tuesday’s determined, 1-1 derby draw with Tottenham with Michail Antonio dropping to the bench as Edson Álvarez returned from a two-game suspension. 
 
That switch saw Jarrod Bowen return to his role as lone striker and the busy, buzzing England international quickly made a nuisance of himself, robbing Nelson Semedo on the byline before cutting back to the inrushing Tomáš Souček whose first touch lamentably deserted him. 
 
But having heeded that early warning, Wolves would ensure that there was to be no repeat during what would be become a totally one-sided, opening 45 minutes.
 
With his team kicking off in 11th spot, four places and three points below his former club, boss Gary O’Neil made two changes from the team that had also shared a goal apiece, four days earlier.
 
Tommy Doyle and Santiago Bueno both earned recalls following Tuesday’s draw at Burnley as Leon Chiwome and Hugo Bueno were demoted to the bench, where they were joined by ex-Hammers’ favourite Craig Dawson.
 
Knowing that victory would take them level with West Ham in the table, Wolves clearly had the bit between their teeth and Rayan Aït-Nouri was the first to demonstrate those intentions with a rising 20-yarder that cleared Łukasz Fabiański’s crossbar. 
 
Sarabia, Doyle and Mario Lemina also forced Hammers Polish stopper into saves, while Kurt Zouma’s last-gasp tackle denied Aït-Nouri in the act of shooting. 
 
But on 33 minutes, when the Algerian attacker was sent racing away by Doyle, this time the unfortunate Emerson was a split-second adrift with his timing, making contact with Aït-Nouri’s right ankle ahead of the ball.
 
Referee Harrington’s on-field decision was duly ratified by the suits in the VAR studio at Stockley Park and, although Fabiański guessed correctly by diving to his left, he could not prevent Sarabia’s decisive spot-kick from creeping inside the base of the right-hand upright.
 
Having gone one down, West Ham could have found themselves even further adrift but for Doyle’s wayward shooting and two alert stops from the industrious Fabiański that denied Joao Gomes and Sarabia as the Hammers forlorn first half drew to a conclusion.
 
Certainly, change was needed and Moyes responded with a double switch with Czech mates Souček and Vladimír Coufal standing down for Antonio and Ben Johnson.
 
After witnessing 45 minutes of inert, attacking intent from the bench, Antonio marked his arrival with a low 20-yarder that finally brought the hitherto redundant José Sa into play.
 
But less than ten minutes after the restart, Moyes found himself heading straight back to the drawing board after the injured Bowen was kneed in the back to leave his second-half plans in tatters.
 
The Scot now pitched substitute Aaron Cresswell into a new-look, three-man defence with Johnson and Emerson adopting the role of wing-backs. 
 
Down but not out, the Hammers remained on the front foot as Mohammed Kudus fired over before Ward-Prowse saw his free-kick deflect just a whisker wide off substitute Matheus Cunha, who had replaced the crocked Aït-Nouri.
 
Having conceded the first-half penalty, Emerson thought he had atoned for his ill-timed tackle on the hour, when he nodded home at the far post after Kudus whipped over an inviting right-wing cross but referee Harrington soon silenced the Claret and Blue cheers by ruling out the header for a push on Semedo.
 
Dusting himself down from another disappointment, the Brazilian-born, Italian international was back in the thick of things on 73 minutes when for reasons only known to Emerson himself, he popped up on the right side of the Wolves area before sending over a low cross that was handed by Kilman.
 
Gratefully grabbling the lifeline that had literally been handed to the Hammers by the Wolves skipper, cool as you like, Paquetá embarked on a stuttering run-up before curling the subsequent spot-kick beyond the outstretched left glove of the sprawling Sa and inside the right-hand post.
 
Wolves were already a shadow of the side that had enjoyed such a bright first half and after Johnson uncharacteristically arrived in the area to volley straight at Sa, the escaping Kudus then found the Portuguese keeper bravely diving into his studs. 
 
By now, only team was looking destined to go on to land all three points and, with O’Neil helplessly looking on from his technical area, Cresswell forced a corner with just six minutes remaining.
 
But with everyone waiting in a congested, crowded six-yard box, Ward-Prowse ignored all with a deep, inswinging flag-kick that eluded everybody as it dipped under the far angle to the angst of the red-shirted, red-faced Sá and his defence.
 
Direct from that corner, Ward-Prowse’s sixth goal of the season was befitting of a surreal second half for West Ham, who had looked rudderless when they trudged off at the break but still there was late, late drama to come.
 
Just seconds of the 10 injury-time minutes remained when Johnson conceded a last-gasp corner that was floated towards the edge of the six-yard box, where Kilman rose, unchallenged, to power what looked like a saving header into the Hammers net.
 
But home cheers quickly turned to jeers, when overworked referee Harrington was referred to his pitch-side monitor, whereupon he wiped out the Wolves skipper’s late, late leveller for an offside against recently-arrived substitute Tawanda Chirewa, who had been standing in Fabiański’s line of sight.
 
Having been on the wrong side of so many Video Assistant Referee reviews in recent weeks, that decision proved welcome respite for Moyes but although the valuable victory sent his team level on points with Manchester United, with focus now turning to Thursday’s UEFA Europa League quarter-final, first leg at Bayer Leverkusen, the Scot will be desperately hoping that Bowen is fit enough to climb aboard the plane to Germany.
 
Wolves: Sá, Toti, Semedo, S Bueno, Kilman, Doherty (H Bueno 87), M. Lemina, Gomes, Aït-Nouri (Cunha 55), Sarabia (Chiwome 75), Doyle (Chirewa 87). Unused subs: Bentley, N. Lemina, Dawson, Fraser. 
 
West Ham: Fabiański, Coufal (Antonio 46), Emerson , Zouma, Mavropanos, Souček (Johnson 46), Álvarez, Ward-Prowse, Kudus, Paquetá, Bowen (Cresswell 54). Unused subs: Anang, Phillips, Cornet, Ings, Ogbonna, Aguerd.
 
Booked: Emerson (31), Gomes (43), Toti (78), Traoré (88), Paquetá (90), Sarabia (90+12).

Referee: Tony Harrington.