Forget those Coronation street parties, there will be a right Royal knees-up going long into the East End evening after West Ham United sent themselves seven points clear of the relegation zone with three games left after a wonderful win over Manchester United.

Saïd Benrahma was the Hammers’ match-winner with a 27th-minute strike that red-faced Red Devils’ keeper David de Gea will not want to see replayed ever again but this valiant victory - that surely all but secures Premier League safety - was a collective effort from everyone in claret and blue.

Add in two disallowed goals, the denial of a stonewall penalty and a Tomáš Souček shot that splintered a post and this was a night when David Moyes' side more than merited victory over his former club, who missed out on the opportunity to leapfrog Newcastle United into third spot.

Rewind a mere fortnight and the seemingly resurgent Hammers had just extended their in-form run to one solitary defeat in their last 10 matches in all competitions with a fabulous 4-0 victory at Bournemouth.

That vital victory had sent them six points clear of the relegation zone but fast-forward two weekends and - following defeats against Liverpool, Crystal Palace and table-topping Manchester City - Moyes' men were again looking over their shoulders in 15th spot as they came into this Sunday evening contest with that safety margin now reduced to just four points.

A sickness bug had swept through the Hammers squad up in the north-west on Wednesday evening but following his side’s 3-0 defeat against the side from the blue half of Manchester, the West Ham manager was at least able to welcome back his absent trio of skipper Declan Rice, Nayef Aguerd and Souček for the visit of the city’s red contingent.

Indeed, with the Scot making four changes, Benrahma also returned, while injured Vladimír Coufal (hamstring) plus substitutes Pablo Fornals, Flynn Downes and Emerson Palmieri all stood down.

Following a rousing rendition of God Save the King before kick-off, the sell-out crowd were treated to an equally raucous opening with the Hammers failing to find the final ball, while United were failing to find their shooting boots as Marcus Rashford, Bruno Fernandes, Antony and Christian Eriksen all fired wide inside the opening quarter-hour.

Despite conceding a stoppage-time penalty and suffering a last-gasp loss at Brighton & Hove Albion on Thursday evening, Erik ten Hag’s side still kicked off in fourth spot and, following that defeat on the south coast, the Dutchman made a treble switch by recalling Eriksen, Wout Weghorst and Tyrell Malacia, while Anthony Martial, Fred and Diogo Dalot dropped to the bench.

With the 20-minute mark approaching, Aguerd’s raking crossfield ball sent Benrahma galloping away down the left but when he fired a low cross into the six-yard box, the inrushing Michail Antonio just could not find the killer touch.

At the other end, the shots continued to pile up and when Fernandes played in Rashford on the left of the Hammers area, the England striker unleashed a low, angled 15-yarder that rocked the base of Łukasz Fabiański’s near post.  

On 27 minutes, though, West Ham finally conjured up their first strike of the evening and, while Benrahma’s speculative 20-yard shot had none of the pace of Rashford’s earlier thumping drive it did still have enough pace to deceive De Gea.

With Antonio and Luke Shaw scrapping for the ball on the centre spot, Benrahma picked up the pieces and broke from halfway but with nobody in support as he approached the United area, the 19-times capped Algerian international had no option but to try his luck with a low effort that curled around Victor Lindelöf’s shinpads before bouncing gently over De Gea’s outstretched right glove and nestling in the net.

As everyone in claret and blue danced with delight at the sight of Benrahma taking his tally for the season into double figures, Lindelöf held his head in his hands, while the embarrassed Spanish keeper buried his in the London Stadium turf, aghast at the fact that he had let such a soft shot slip through his clutches.

There were no such home concerns regarding Fabiański five minutes later, when the Polish stopper tipped Antony’s 18-yarder onto his right upright and, after De Gea did manage to hold when Jarrod Bowen scuffed a close range effort into his midriff, Malacia was then booked for felling the Hammers wide-boy as he embarked on another raid.

Then, in first-half stoppage time, De Gea beat away Benrahma’s low angled shot but with the West Ham matchwinner then reclaiming the loose ball, referee Peter Bankes inexplicably blew the half-time whistle as opposed to pointing to the penalty spot after the juggling Lindelöf had handled the consequent cross.

Undoubtedly aggrieved and agitated by the failure of Video Assistant Review referee Stuart Attwell to intervene, too, Moyes’ boys were fired up for the restart.

First, Souček forced De Gea to beat his angled shot behind and there was more dissent in the home ranks when Antonio hooked home on the line, only to be penalised for tangling with the United keeper in the earlier goalmouth scramble.

By fair means or foul, the Hammers just could not get the second goal that those energised, electrified Eastenders were willing them to score.

Linking with the imperious Lucas Paquetá, the rampant Rice drilled across the face of goal, Souček thudded the near post with an angled shot, while Aaron Wan-Bissaka cynically chopped the accelerating Antonio at the expense of a yellow card after West Ham broke forward in numbers.

Martial replaced Weghorst and, after Souček’s header was ruled out by an offside flag, Marcel Sabitzer and Jadon Sancho came on for Eriksen and Antony, before Souček and Wan-Bissaka received prolonged treatment following a nasty clash of heads in the Hammers goalmouth.

Dusting himself down and typifying the spirit of the night, the Czech Republic international returned to his central midfield lair, where he continued to joust and jostle for every ball alongside fellow his West Ham warriors.

Martial saw an angled effort tipped aside before glancing the consequent corner straight across goal as the visitors went for broke during a seemingly eternal eight minutes of added time.

Just as they had throughout the entire evening, though, West Ham held firm to depart at the final whistle still in 15th spot but with a healthy seven-point cushion ahead of turning their sights to their UEFA Conference League semi-final, first-leg against AZ Alkmaar on Thursday evening (8pm) and, hopefully, another Cockney knees-up.

WEST HAM UNITED: Fabiański, Kehrer, Cresswell (Emerson 90+5), Aguerd, Ogbonna, Rice, Souček, Paquetá (Downes 90+3), Benrahma (Fornals 87), Bowen, Antonio (Johnson (90+3). Unused subs: Areola, Anang, Lanzini, Cornet, Ings.

MANCHESTER UNITED: De Gea, Wan-Bissaka (Dalot 87), Malacia (Fred 87), Lindelöf, Shaw, Casemiro, Eriksen (Sabitzer 74), Fernandes, Antony, (Sancho 74), Rashford, Weghorst (Martial 57). Unused subs: Butland, Maguire, Williams, Garnacho.

Booked: Malacia (36) Wan-Bissaka (64).

Referee: Peter Bankes.