Just where would West Ham be without Jarrod Bowen? Five days since confronting angry supporters after Graham Potter’s side succumbed to a third successive defeat, Bowen’s clever first-time finish, with full time looming, was the catalyst for West Ham’s first win of the season.
Goals by Lucas Paquetá, poised to stay after West Ham dismissed an inquiry from Aston Villa, and Callum Wilson, the former from the penalty spot, ensured an eerily comfortable finish. By the end, as Bowen was serenaded by the delighted supporters in the away end, it was hard to remember which of these teams was supposed to be engulfed by crisis.
If discussions in the coming days dictate the future of Nuno Espírito Santo at Nottingham Forest, then the international break will surely bring a little respite for Potter. For Forest – in front of the watching owner, Evangelos Marinakis, this was a dreadful performance and a pathetic, and untimely, collapse. Bowen could have made it 4-0 deep into added time but Matz Sels prevented the England forward from inflicting further damage.
“It is a really pleasing day for us because with the results we’ve had it is very easy to be negative and lose trust and confidence,” Potter said. “This is the world we’re in, you get written off in your job after a week, which is ridiculous.”
The day after Forest supporters hastily booked flights and hotels following the hotly anticipated release of their Europa League fixtures, this match fell flat and West Ham fashioned the best chances. Wilson, who arrived on a free this summer, impressed off the bench, forcing Sels to tip over a deflected strike within a few minutes of replacing Niclas Füllkrug and he later tested the Forest goalkeeper from an awkward angle after showing strength in the box.
Marinakis has spent about £160m on nine signings this window with two more, the left-back Cuiabano and goalkeeper John Victor, poised to join from Botafogo before the transfer deadline on Monday. Forest’s most recent arrival, Nicolò Savona, was paraded on the pitch before kick-off but while five began on the bench only one of their summer additions, Dan Ndoye, started. James McAtee replaced Ndoye, who struggled, approaching the hour while Igor Jesus later replaced Chris Wood, something of a like‑for‑like change. Nuno waited until the penultimate minute of normal time to introduce the forwards Arnaud Kalimuendo and Omari Hutchinson.
For so long this was a contest punctuated by misplaced passes and unforced errors, the West Ham debutant Mateus Fernandes, a £42m signing from Southampton, one of few players to make a positive impression before Bowen, with six minutes of regular time to play, produced another moment to remember. Until then it seemed West Ham would take heart from not only avoiding the ignominy of a fourth defeat in a row courtesy of a disciplined display but also a welcome first clean sheet.
Bowen’s goal, which stemmed from an El Hadji Malick Diouf throw‑in down the left, gave West Ham the leg‑up that prompted Forest to crumble. An on-the-turn Bowen squeezed his shot in at Sels’s near post and raced towards the away fans, sliding on his knees and then kissing the West Ham badge. Paquetá went ballistic, losing his footing after booting one of the balls behind the goal as his teammates mobbed Bowen.
Then it was Paquetá’s turn, the Brazil midfielder sending Sels the wrong way after Crysencio Summerville, on as a substitute, was tripped in the box by Ibrahim Sangaré, who had been a target for West Ham. Paquetá celebrated by pretending to throw away a mobile phone – presumably a call from Villa – before beating his chest and kissing the irons on his shirt. The defender Nayef Aguerd, who has made it clear he wishes to leave West Ham, was conspicuous by his absence.
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Things quickly spiralled for Forest, who struggled to test Mads Hermansen at the other end. Chris Wood sent a tame header at the West Ham goalkeeper a minute into the second half but it was a listless display. Nothing came off for Morgan Gibbs-White and Elliot Anderson, whose consistent performances were rewarded with an England call-up, was also outfoxed in midfield. Wilson capped the scoring, glancing in Diouf’s cross unmarked after eluding Murillo and Sels prevented Bowen making things uglier.
Those talks with Marinakis promise to be interesting. Might this result now give the conversation a different twist? “It doesn’t help,” Nuno said. “It was shocking today. Everybody at Forest, we are very sad and upset, but there is no connection between [these] things. We will try to separate it and move forward in the right direction.”
