WEST HAM have reached rock bottom and there was hardly anyone there to watch.
Tens of thousands stayed away as Morgan Gibbs-White’s late winner pushed the Hammers closer to the Championship.
Nuno Espirito Santo, who started the season in charge of Nottingham Forest, has now led West Ham on their worst Premier League run – ten without a win – since 2007.
That year they had Carlos Tevez to inspire a great escape. Two new strikers, Taty Castellanos and Pablo Felipe, were on show here but neither look fit to lace Tevez’ boots.
Forest arrived having lost their last four, fell behind to a Murillo own goal and looked miles off it and still the Hammers collapsed.
Nicolas Dominguez levelled with a looping header before Alphonse Areola conceded a late penalty and Gibbs-White took advantage – leaving the hosts seven points adrift.
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After their shocking show at Wolves on Saturday the message from the top at West Ham was that they were standing by their man.
Having now surrendered six points to two of Nuno’s former clubs, that stance is sure to be tested in the coming days. Hammers fans, and some players, would be glad to see the back of the Portuguese.
One of West Ham’s two new signings, Castellanos, went straight into the starting XI.
Though you would not have known it crossing the bridge to the London Stadium, with screens outside the bowl showing Nicolas Fullkrug to be leading the line – despite the fact he now plays for AC Milan.
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You could, however, forgive club staff for confusion over the team.
Callum Wilson, who joined five months ago but is already leaving after tearing up his contract, was due to be on the bench at the start of the day.
But come the evening Wilson’s name was nowhere to be seen on the teamsheet.
Wilson may only have scored four goals in his very short time at West Ham but he was their joint top scorer.
And, as ever with this club, there is no guarantee that the two men brought in, at a cost of £43million, to replace him will be any good.
Sean Dyche had wanted an early goal to turn the home fans against their side. But Hammers supporters scuppered his plans by not turning up.
While it was a bitterly cold and wet evening in east London the scores of empty seats were alarming. There were fewer fans inside the stadium last night than for their home game against Brentford earlier this season when a boycott was staged.
It was all thanks to a Forest player that those who had turned up were celebrating early on.
Crysencio Summerville sent a corner to the near post, where Tomas Soucek flicked on and watched Murillo, from two yards out, emphatically head into his own net.
There were so few signs of life from the visitors at this stage. Neco Williams saw an early tester from range tipped over but there was little more on offer.
They surrendered possession with alarming ease time and again and were fortunate West Ham lacked the quality to punish the constant mistakes.
Despite lacking control, Forest still have the individuals to hurt any side and Callum Hudson-Odoi offered a reminder just before the break – cutting in from the left and striking the crossbar.
The visitors were protesting after the interval when they were not given a corner despite a shot coming off Soucek and going behind.
Dyche was even more incensed when, from the goal kick, the hosts went up the other end and doubled the lead – though it was ruled out due to a narrow offside against new man Castellanos in the build-up.
But their anger would soon disappear.
The Forest boss pumped up his team after the VAR review – and they responded.
After actually being awarded a corner four minutes later, they were level, though more by luck than judgement.
Elliot Anderson swung the set-piece into the near post where Dominguez sent a hopeful header looping into the air, fortunate that it headed to the back post and over the head of Kyle Walker-Peters.
Nuno responded by adding £17m striker Pablo to the mix – the Brazilian drawing a save from Matz Sels at the near post on the rebound from a Walker-Peters effort that had also been stopped.
West Ham were forcing all the late pressure, skipper Jarrod Bowen seeing a strike just forced behind by Murillo having been sent through on the counter by youngster Ezra Mayers, before scuffing another effort wide.
Yet still they could not capitalise on Forest looking shaky and soon shot themselves in the foot after Areola caught Gibbs-White in the face.
The French keeper rushed out to meet an Anderson free-kick and instead slapped the Forest captain, an action only spotted by VAR, and allowed Gibbs-White to strike straight down the middle and snatch all three points.
