Forest snatch late win as Gibbs-White penalty seals relegation scrap

LONDON, Jan 6 : Nottingham Forest ‌eased away from the Premier League relegation zone and left West Ham United in deep trouble as Morgan Gibbs-White slotted a late penalty for a priceless 2-1 victory at the London Stadium on Tuesday.

Billed as a relegation six-pointer between the sides 17th and 18th in the table, West Ham took the lead thanks to a Murillo own goal but their hopes of ending a nine-match winless run faded in the second half.

Nicolas Dominguez headed an equaliser for Forest in the 55th minute, shortly after West Ham's Crysencio Summerville had seen a goal ruled out for a marginal offside decision.

In a nervous finale, West Ham goalkeeper Alphonse Areola clattered into Gibbs-White trying to deal with a ball into the ‌area and referee Tony Harrington awarded a spot kick after viewing a pitch-side VAR monitor.

Gibbs-White stepped up to ‌convert in the 89th minute and Forest hung on for a crucial win that lifted them seven points above the drop zone.

Forest have 21 points from 21 games with third-from-bottom West Ham on 14 after a 10-game run without a league win and pressure piling up on manager Nuno Espirito Santo.

The previous meeting between the two clubs ended with West Ham scoring three late goals in a 3-0 win at the City Ground in August, a result that effectively ended Espirito Santo's reign as Forest manager.

Four months on, having replaced Graham Potter as West Ham manager in September, the Portuguese coach looked crestfallen in the rain after a ‍damaging result that means he has won only two of his 16 league games in charge.

At halftime, West Ham were on course to cut the gap to Forest to one point. By the end it was a seven-point margin and their survival hopes are looking bleak.

'FOUGHT RIGHT TO THE END'

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