Forest floored by ruthless late show as West Ham punish a flat City Ground

For 83 minutes, Nottingham Forest kept West Ham at arm’s length without ever convincing they would break through themselves. Then, in seven punishing minutes, the game ran away: Jarrod Bowen scored on 84, Lucas Paquetá converted a penalty on 88 and Callum Wilson made it three in the 91st minute as Forest fell to a 3-0 defeat in front of the watching owner Evangelos Marinakis.

It was a dreadful way to end an uninspired performance. Matz Sels had done his part with a string of saves to extend the stalemate, but a lack of incision going forward and a late lapse in concentration left Nuno Espírito Santo’s team empty-handed and facing uncomfortable questions heading into the international break.

A plan without punch

The first half was defined by scarcity rather than threat. West Ham, reorganised into a back four, took few risks and Forest could not find the gears to unsettle them. The opening 45 minutes produced just four shots and a combined xG of 0.28, the lowest figures for a Premier League first half so far this season. West Ham had the only effort on target, with Sels clawing away Paquetá’s strike.

After the restart, Forest enjoyed brief spells of pressure but rarely troubled the West Ham goalkeeper. Chris Wood’s soft header a minute into the second half offered a glimpse, yet the final pass never arrived and Morgan Gibbs-White found little joy as the visitors’ organisation held firm.

Sels’ heroics, then a seven-minute collapse

Sels kept Forest in the contest, first with an acrobatic stop from Paquetá and later by tipping over a deflected Wilson effort before standing up well to the striker from a tight angle. His interventions merited a platform for a late push.

Instead, West Ham struck. A throw from El Hadji Malick Diouf initiated the move that saw Crysencio Summerville deliver for Bowen to swivel and squeeze a shot in at the near post on 84 minutes. Four minutes later, Summerville was tripped by Ibrahim Sangaré and Paquetá rolled in the penalty. Wilson then eluded Murillo to glance in Diouf’s cross for 3-0, a harsh coda to a game that had felt manageable for so long.

Nuno’s crossroads and the mood around the City Ground

The optics are not good: defeat to a side that had lost two from two. Nuno will now hold talks with Marinakis during the international break to clarify direction and pace, conversations both men insist should be separated from any one result. There was a smattering of boos at full-time, but the head coach’s stock remains high with supporters who appreciate his candour and work to date.

Still, this felt like a missed opportunity and a self-inflicted scoreline in the closing stages. Forest were second best in too many departments—tempo, decision-making, and concentration—and they paid for it when West Ham finally accelerated.

Resetting after the break

Forest’s schedule offers no easing in: Arsenal away on 13 September and Burnley away on 20 September, before a European return at Real Betis in the Europa League on 24 September. Nuno has vowed that ongoing talks will not derail the work on the training ground.

Sharper work in the final third and a cooler head late on are the immediate priorities. With Sels in form and the fanbase broadly behind the head coach, Forest have foundations; turning possession into penetration and cutting out late lapses will dictate how quickly they rebound from this setback.