5 hours ago
4
Key events Show key events only Please turn on JavaScript to use this feature
GOAL! West Ham 0-1 Nottingham Forest (Gibbs-White, 11)
Wood and Elanga are starting to combine effectively for the visitors, with the former Manchester United man appealing for a penalty after being crowded out in the box.
Seconds later, a West Ham error gifts an easy goal for Gibbs-White!
10 mins: Another attack, another shot and another save! This time it’s Chris Wood stinging the palms of Areola with a piledriver from 25 yards. A more open opening 10 minutes you could not wish to see.
8 mins: I’d love to see the xG of that Gibbs-White opportunity. Suspect it would be quite high given its close range nature.
It’s real end-to-end stuff here as Bowen draws defenders and it falls for Coufal to force another save from Sels from the right. West Ham looking fairly fluent in attacking areas so far.
6 mins: A big save from Alphonse Areola this time, as a long throw falls kindly for Gibbs-White to volley goalwards from six yards. Should he find the corner there? It’s way too close to the goalkeeper.
5 mins: There’s a problem with the officials’ microphones, which brings a small delay.
Forest’s first attack then yields very little, with Elanga’s cross snuffed out.
3 mins: It’s a barrage of early crosses from West Ham that Forest are having to deal with. The home team have begun freely.
2 mins: Wow, Sels is sprung into an early save from Soucek’s header. Coufal has loads of time from the right to deliver a cross and his finds the head of his fellow countryman. Tipped over for a corner.
1 min: It’s a fairly muted atmosphere around the London Stadium, with a few seats yet to be filled. Aaron Cresswell, playing in his final home game as a Hammer, has at least received a good ovation from the supporters.
KICK OFF
LET’S GO!
The players are out and we’re almost ready …
One win in their past six Premier League games amounts to a run of form that Nottingham Forest may rue if Champions League qualification eludes them. They really cannot afford another slip-up now, given other teams have surged beyond them. The silver lining today is how good Forest have been on the road this season, with only Liverpool winning more away games.
Less than 10 minutes until kick-off.
Nuno Espirito Santo said yesterday that Nottingham Forest were “concerned but positive” about Taiwo Awoniyi after the striker was put in an induced coma when he suffered a serious abdominal injury against Leicester.
Awoniyi remains very much in the club’s thoughts today as they warm up in tops bearing his name. He remains under observation and in recovery.
An email from Jeremy Boyce:
It’s very good of you (Daniel now, Emillia now, you later...) all to provide us with your MBMs on these end of season Super Sunday matches with some potentially important points and a cup at stake. But surely all your work will be overshadowed by the action later on where REALLY big things could happen. Of course I’m talking about the Vardy-o-clock (15.00 BST on what is very much Super Vardyday) fixture where the big fella just needs 1 goal for the perfect send-off in his final appearance at Filb ... the King Power. He couldn’t ask for kinder opposition today than the free-conceding Tractors, so kind in fact that you could imagine them, if it gets to 89 minutes and he hasn’t found the net yet, giving him possession then forming a guard of honour as he walks the ball in. Would he accept the offer ?
Surely Vards will have to go out in a blaze of glory, Jeremy, Skittles-vodka an’ all.
Lucas Paquetá is among the West Ham substitutes this afternoon and his manager Graham Potter has revealed the ongoing investigation into whether the Brazilian breached betting rules is taking a toll on the player.
There’s plenty else going on around the footballing world this fine Sunday. Catch the final moments of the last ever Everton men’s fixture at Goodison Park, or the early knockings of the Women’s FA Cup final. Or stick with me here, if you wish.
Some stats: West Ham have won five of their six Premier League home games against Nottingham Forest, while Forest are seeking to complete their first league double over the Hammers since 1983/84.
In fairness, they haven’t been in the same division all that much in this century.
It’s crazy to think that 20 points separated these two teams at the end of last season, with West Ham finishing in ninth on 52 points and Forest way down in 17th on just 32 points.
This season has seen a near-perfect reversal of those positions, with Forest currently on 62 points and West Ham on 40.
Just shows what can be achieved if you do/don’t have a plan.
Team news
West Ham (3-5-2): Areola; Todibo, Kilman, Cresswell; Coufal, Ward-Prowse, Rodríguez, Soucek, Wan-Bissaka; Bowen, Kudus.
Subs: Fabianski, Soler, Paquetá, Füllkrug, Mavropanos, Guilherme, Álvarez, Emerson, Ferguson.
Nottingham Forest (4-2-3-1): Sels; Aina, Milenkovic, Murillo, Williams; Sangaré, Anderson; Gibbs-White, Domínguez, Elanga; Wood.
Subs: Miguel, Morato, Hudson-Odoi, Toffolo, J. Silva, Yates, R. Sosa, Oliveira, Abbott.
Preamble
Now then, Nottingham Forest have an opportunity to set up a potential doozy of a final day Champions League qualification decider against Chelsea – providing they can see off West Ham at the London Stadium today.
Newcastle will have their say in the top five race when they face Arsenal later on, but for now Forest know that a win would propel them to 65 points – level with Manchester City (who play Bournemouth in midweek) and one point off fifth-placed Chelsea, the very team Forest face next weekend. Oooft. Any dropped points from Nuno Espírito Santo’s men, however, would realistically end their hopes of playing Champions League football next season – not that Europa League or Conference League qualification ought to be looked upon as a failure.
Still, having been riding as high as third for a long time this season, Forest fans will not want to see their side squander another chance to pick up vital points this afternoon, especially against a poor West Ham side whose only win in their past nine matches was at … an even worse Manchester United. The Hammers have little in the way of motivation, while you’d assume Forest will be bang up for it.
Kick off is at 2.15pm (BST) and team news will drop into the next post.
