In the end the only thing missing was Evangelos Marinakis charging down to the pitch to add one more body to Nottingham Forest’s desperate rearguard action. There was chaos everywhere at the London Stadium, all sense evaporating after Jarrod Bowen stirred West Ham into life with a superb volley. So serene until Bowen’s goal transformed the mood in the 86th minute, Forest were gripped by nerves once their two-goal buffer disappeared and they found themselves battling to prolong their push for Champions League qualification.
There were 17 minutes of added time to endure. A melee broke out at one stage and there was an escape for Forest when Matz Sels, a standout player during a season in which so many of Nuno Espírito Santo’s players have exceeded expectations, repelled a powerful header from Niclas Füllkrug, whose introduction as a substitute had contributed to West Ham’s belated improvement in attack.
