Two teams battling it out for survival, West Ham vs Nottingham Forest was a battle between one of the worst defences and one of the worst attacks.
Separated by four points ahead of the match, the fixture was a true relegation six-pointer with both sides struggling for form this season.
West Ham boss Nuno Espirito Santo faced off against his old side as the Portuguese manager looked to get one over his former employees, whilst Forest looked to get the job done and escape the relegation zone scrap.
West Ham vs Nottingham Forest 1-2: Gibbs-White Penalty Secures Forest’s Win In Relegation Six-Pointer
The Hammers have made two signings already to boost their forward line as Taty Castellanos and Pablo made the squad with the former starting up top from the start.
For Forest, Callum Hudson-Odoi returned to an attack that’s only scored twice since their massive 3-0 victory over Tottenham Hotspur only five matches ago.
A quick start is what West Ham needed and they got exactly that as they pressed the Forest backline and won a series of corners.
From one of these set-pieces, Crysencio Summerville sent a teasing ball into the box, which was flicked on at the front post by Tomas Soucek.
The ball headed goalwards. However, Murillo made sure it ended up in the back of the net as the Forest defender hung his head in shame with his side 1-0 down once again.
Sean Dyche’s men wouldn’t go down without a fight and had a few good chances and it could have been them that took the lead were it not for a great save from Alphonse Areola denying Neco Williams’ effort that was heading for the top corner.
At the end of the half, Hudson-Odoi was offered the space to let fly from distance, but unfortunately, his effort was denied by the crossbar.
West Ham scored their second goal only six minutes into the second half as Kyle Walker-Peters found Crysencio Summerville, who thumped his effort into the back of the net.
However, the goal was disallowed for offside, and then five minutes later, Forest equalised as Elliot Anderson’s corner was met by the head of Nicolas Dominguez with his looping header finding the net.
Chances were flying left, right and centre as West Ham and Nottingham Forest bombed players forward, but it was the visitors that nicked it in the end.
A teasing free-kick from Anderson was headed away by Soucek. However, Areola fouled Gibbs-White off the ball as referee Tony Harrington pointed to the spot after an on-field VAR review.
The Forest captain made no mistake from the spot as the Reds got back to winning ways and moved seven points clear of the relegation zone.
Forest Increase The Gap On The Relegation Zone
West Ham vs Nottingham Forest was crucial for both managers as they have come under increased pressure with the relegation zone scrap becoming a reality for both sides.
Dyche’s side have admittedly played well in all of their matches that saw them go four games without a win, but football is a results-based business and a reaction needed to happen sooner rather than later.
Against Villa were nervous last time in defence and very much toothless in attack. The game against West Ham pretty much started in the same vein. However, they were able to get back into their stride and score from two set-pieces.
In the relegation zone battle, Forest finally have a nice seven-point buffer and the Gibbs-White penalty just typified what sort of performance it was.
With the crowd on your back and having missed your last penalty, Reds’ number 10 steadied himself and sent Areola the wrong way to put an end to the winless run for Forest.
Sitting on 21 points from 21 games, two points separate the Tricky Trees and Bournemouth in 15th before we see a slightly larger gap between the Cherries and the whole host of teams fighting for European football.
After such an important win that sees them escape being dragged into the relegation zone scrap, Forest may finally have the foundations and platform to build on this victory and climb back up the league table.
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Nuno’s Hammers In A Tricky Spot
After leading the game to seeing the win taken away from them, West Ham and manager Nuno Espirito Santo have a lot of work to do.
There were a lot of positives from both halves for the Hammers as they could have easily been 2-0 up if it wasn’t for the offside call.
After that point, it looked like the game was against the hosts, and after Dominguez’s header, the mood at the London Stadium completely flipped.
The West Ham players certainly didn’t go down without a fight, but the game was so finely poised, it could have really gone either way, and in the end, it was Forest that came out victorious after the Gibbs-White penalty.
New signings Castellanos and Pablo looked great as they caused the Forest backline many problems; however, Forest got the luck of the draw and moved clear of the relegation zone.
West Ham find themselves in a very dangerous place as they stare further down the barrel of relegation to the Championship for the first time in over 15 years.
Their next three games won’t be easy either, with a home fixture against Sunderland sandwiched between two London derbies against Tottenham and Chelsea.
The gap to safety is now up to seven points with 17 games to go this season. Whilst some will see the task as impossible, the West Ham players showed the desire, fight and attacking flair that can keep Hammers fans believing until the end that a miracle can still be on the cards.
Main Photo
Credit: IMAGO / NurPhoto
Recording Date: 06.01.2026
