Nottingham Forest won 2-1 for West Ham United thanks to a second-half penalty from Morgan Gibbs vs. Whyte (determined by VAR), leaving West Ham United with just seven points.
In what was being billed as the ‘Relegation Cup Final’, West Ham looked in good form with Murillo’s own goal and Sisencio Somerville’s goal midway through the second half.
However, Somerville’s goal was ruled out by VAR for offside by new signing Valentin Castellanos, and Forest equalized just four minutes later from Nicolas Dominguez’s wide swing.
VAR then intervened and awarded Forest a penalty four minutes before the end when Alphonse Areola caught Gibbs-White in the face as he tried to clear a set-piece with a punch.
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Morgan Gibbs-White scores the decisive penalty for Nottingham Forest!
Manager Nuno Espirito Santo will be facing Forest for the first time since he was sacked in September following a breakdown in his relationship with owner Evangelos Marinakis, but he is under intense scrutiny after losing five of his last six games as West Ham manager.
Nuno said: “There’s a big gap, but it’s not over yet. We keep believing. We need a good run.”
“It’s not over yet, there’s a lot of football to be played.
“Seven points difference. Of course everyone will exclude us. But we will not allow this emotion to enter the dressing room.”
Asked about his future as West Ham manager, he said: “It’s not about me now. It’s not about me. It’s about how we react.”
For current Forest manager Sean Dyche, the three points were a welcome win after four consecutive defeats.
Gibbs-White: I got punched in the face and couldn’t breathe.
Nottingham Forest captain Morgan Gibbs-White told Sky Sports about the penalty:
“I got hit in the face. I had no idea what was going on. I couldn’t breathe. When he said it was a penalty, I just came to my senses and I definitely wanted to get a penalty.”
“We practiced yesterday too. It was like a safety measure.”
Soucek: Penalty calls are a joke – it’s like basketball.
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West Ham midfielder Tomas Soucek was left disappointed after the Hammers conceded a late penalty due to VAR in the London side’s 2-1 defeat to Nottingham Forest.
West Ham midfielder Tomas Soucek told Sky Sports:
“I’m kidding. I saw earlier that if something like that happened, you’d get 20 penalties in a game. I came to the Premier League because I thought it was the toughest league in the world. We’re all warriors, warriors, but this is more like basketball. You can’t touch the players.”
Nuno: We’ll keep fighting, it’s not over yet.
Nuno Espirito Santo has vowed to continue believing West Ham can avoid relegation.
“I keep going, keep believing and keep working with the players to understand that sometimes this is also part of the game,” he told Sky Sports.
“There will be good times and there will be bad times, but we have to be resilient enough to understand the situation. I will make sure my sons believe that too.”
Asked for a message to the players and fans, Nuno said: “Keep believing, keep coming together. It’s not over yet. We’ll keep going.”
“It’s hard to ask something from (the fans). It’s hard to explain. I understand their frustration and sadness, and we feel the same way.
“What can I say? Please continue to help us. Today they showed that when a team gives, they will give back the support that we need. The players showed that we will continue to fight here.”
Asked whether he expected support from the West Ham board, he said: “Of course we have to work on this together.”
Daish: It’s not always pretty soccer
Nottingham Forest manager Sean Dyche said:
“I was happy with the result. There was understandably a lot of noise around the match. The important thing is to find a way to win.
“Since I’ve been at the club we’ve obviously played better, but that wasn’t the issue today. Today was about a winning mentality and I thought we deserved it in the end. I’m very happy about the mentality of the players and the direction we want to go, because it’s not always pretty.
“Sometimes you have to find a different way to win, and I think we did that tonight.”
