This video can not be played. West Ham beat Burnley to boost survival hopes.

For the first time since before Christmas, just three points will separate the teams in 17th and 18th at the end of a Premier League weekend. West Ham's 2-0 victory at Burnley has at last dragged them to within touching distance of Nottingham Forest again, with the Hammers enjoying a mid-season renaissance by winning three of their past four matches.

While Wolves and Burnley are cut completely adrift, Nuno Espirito Santo's team are seemingly keeping the relegation battle alive single-handedly. There have only been 10 occasions since the Premier League was formed in 1992-93 that the fight for survival has not gone down to the final day - although five of those have occurred in the last decade.

So after some damp squibs in recent years, are we set for an unusually exciting end to the campaign at the bottom of the table? BBC Sport looks at how things are shaping up as clubs attempt to avoid the dreaded drop into the Championship.

This video can not be played. Positivity the key to West Ham's upturn in form - Shearer.

While Wolves are not mathematically down yet, they are propping up the table on a meagre eight points from 25 matches and sports analytics and data experts Opta rank their chances of relegation as 99.99%. That also effectively means the West Midlands club are in a scrap to avoid the unwanted record of winning the fewest points in a single Premier League campaign, currently held by Derby, who managed just 11 in 2007-08.

Meanwhile, Burnley's loss to the Hammers means there is a 99.4% chance they will spend next term in the second tier of English football. There was an air of frustration around Turf Moor on Saturday with the home fans castigating the players and calling for Scott Parker's dismissal as boss after watching their team fail to win for a 16th consecutive match.

"Whether we fail or we don't fail, we come through this for sure," said Parker. "I'm really sorry that I can't promise we'll be better for it with a win or with staying in this division but the longer the journey is, we will be better for it."

This video can not be played. 'Fragile' Burnley unable to crank up the pressure - Parker.

Hammers boss Nuno said his side "are still in the same situation" and called on them to "focus on" themselves after winning in Lancashire. Having gone 10 Premier League matches without a win, West Ham appear to have built some momentum from Callum Wilson's dramatic late goal at Tottenham on 17 January. And they will feel they can tackle their remaining 13 games with renewed optimism despite being ranked with a 75.77% chance of going down, with Nuno also having the experience of guiding Nottingham Forest to safety on the final day of the 2023-24 campaign.

"West Ham look more like a Nuno team over the last few weeks," said former Liverpool and England midfielder Danny Murphy, who is a pundit on Saturday's Match of the Day. "They have won three out of four and have all the momentum. Crysencio Summerville is playing out of his skin and Jarrod Bowen is always going to chip in, plus they've signed two strikers.

"All of a sudden they look like a team that can score goals and that means you don't have to rely so heavily on keeping them out the other end. However, you'd always rather have the points in the bag than doing the chasing as you can't have many slip-ups - you have to keep on getting points."

While Forest are just three points above West Ham in 17th, Sean Dyche will hope his side has the quality to pull clear having spent around £200m on players over the last 12 months. Opta rank the two-time champions of Europe as having a 15.3% chance of being relegated and it is likely Dyche will have to juggle his resources due to the club's continued involvement in the Europa League, where they are due to face Fenerbahce in the knockout play-offs for the last 16.

"Too many times recently, I've seen Nottingham Forest look passive," said Murphy. "Whether that's legginess from the amount of games in which Sean Dyche has had to play the same players. He gave fringe players the chance to stake their claim against Wrexham and they didn't take it, so he's had to pick the same eight or nine week in week out.

"I've done it myself and it's hard trying to play every few days and playing to your best, especially under pressure of relegation. Plus, they are trying to manage Europe as well."

Leeds, who claimed a valuable win over Forest on Friday, appear to be in the best form of the three sides on 29 points.

This video can not be played. Leeds beat Forest to move clear of relegation zone. Crystal Palace, who travel to Brighton on Sunday, appear to be in disarray after the departure of captain Marc Guehi and manager Oliver Glasner's confirmation he will be leaving the club at the end of the season. Tottenham have also taken just four of the past 21 points available and have not won a top-flight game since the start of the year.

"Palace have got a scrap on their hands as confidence is draining," added Murphy. "I'm like the majority and think Tottenham will be OK even though the results don't say it. Their squad and the quality they've got will come good and they will get enough points.

"Leeds, for me, are the ones who will be safe given the way they have played in the last two or three months. They have some really nice momentum. And we all know about the Elland Road factor, which is huge.

"So, I think it's between Forest, Palace and West Ham. It is going to be so tight. I really think it's going to go down to the wire."

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