West Ham United v Nottingham Forest
Premier League, London Stadium, Saturday 25 February 2023, 3pm GMT
West Ham United return to home turf for just the third time in 2023 when Nottingham Forest visit London Stadium in the Premier League on Saturday afternoon.
The Hammers have played at home just twice in eight games since the turn of the year, defeating Everton 2-0 and drawing 1-1 with Chelsea.
Despite being unbeaten in E20, West Ham have slipped into the bottom three following last weekend's 2-0 defeat at Tottenham Hotspur.
Among the clubs who have leapfrogged the Irons in 2023 are Nottingham Forest, who have climbed from 19th to 13th following a run of one defeat in seven Premier League matches.
Steve Cooper's Reds won promotion last season and defeated West Ham 1-0 in the reverse fixture at the City Ground in mid-August.
Bobby Moore OBE
Saturday's fixture will see the Club pay tribute to the late, great Bobby Moore OBE on the occasion of the 30th anniversary of his passing on 24 February 1993.
Moore captained West Ham United to FA Cup and European Cup Winners' Cup success in 1964 and 1965 respectively, before becoming the first and only Englishman to lift the FIFA World Cup in 1966.
He went on to make 646 appearances in Claret and Blue between 1958-74, before appearing against the Irons for Fulham in the 1975 FA Cup final for Fulham.
Visual tributes will be paid at London Stadium with a special Bobby Moore photography exhibition in Stadium Store, illustrating iconic images of his life and career.
A 'MOORE 6' floral shirt will be carried out onto pitch before Bobby Moore’s three great-grandchildren to lead out the team as mascots and a one-minute applause is held before kick-off.
Tickets...
Tickets for this sold out game are available on the Ticket Exchange, with Season Ticket Holders who cannot attend this fixture relisting their seats for other supporters to buy. Click here to check availability or relist.
Travel...
As is now the norm, supporters will have some fun and games getting to and from London Stadium on public transport this Satuday.
Greater Anglia services will yet again be suspended, this time between London Liverpool Street and Witham, due to engineering work.
Norwich, Ipswich, Clacton and Colchester Town mainline services will turn around at Witham all weekend, from where buses will replace trains between Witham and Newbury Park, where fans can pick up the London Underground Central line to Stratford.
Buses will also replace trains between Southend Victoria-Newbury Park and between Southminster-Wickford. Braintree branch line services will terminate/start from Witham.
On the Elizabeth line, there will be no service between Stratford and Shenfield. Replacement buses will operate between Stratford-Newbury Park and Romford-Shenfield.
The DLR will be closed between Prince Regent and Beckton. Replacement buses will operate.
On the London Overground, there will be no service between Romford-Upminster. Fans should use local London Buses.
Thankfully, c2c and southeastern railway services will run as scheduled, with no planned engineering works!
Click here to plan your journey on the Transport for London network, or here for National Rail services.
How to Follow...
Saturday's game will not be broadcast live on television in the UK, but will be shown across the world by the Premier League's international broadcast partners.
You can listen to commentary in the UK on BBC Radio London 94.9FM and worldwide on whufc.com and our official app.
You can also follow the action via our live blog on whufc.com and our app and across our social media channels. We will also have highlights and exclusive reaction for you after the final whistle.
Official Programme…
West Ham United's 116-page Official Programme for Saturday's Premier League fixture is available to order online now for just £4, plus £1.49 postage and packaging*.
Copies will be sent via first-class post. Full-season subscriptions are also available, including all Premier League, FA Cup and EFL Cup home issues, from just £119, from the Club's official West Ham Programmes shop.
Team News...
West Ham United trio Kurt Zouma (hip), Paquetá (shoulder) and Maxwel Cornet (calf/illness) all missed last Sunday's fixture at Tottenham Hotspur.
Nottingham Forest have concerns over defenders Serge Aurier (calf), Moussa Niakhaté (thigh) and Willy Boly (thigh), midfielder Scott McKenna (thigh), midfielder Cheikhou Kouyaté (thigh) and forwards Jesse Lingard (knee) and Taiwo Awoniyi (groin).
Defender Ryan Yates (illness) should be back, but goalkeeper Dean Henderson (thigh) and full-back Giulian Biancone are definitely out.
Opposition...
Nottingham Forest's first Premier League campaign since 1998/99 has seen plenty of optimism flowing down the River Trent past the City Ground.
While the Reds may still be some way from the heights of consecutive European Cup wins in 1979 and 1980 under Brian Clough, there has still been plenty to cheer for. Forest fans have been ever the optimists on their Premier League return, and despite a shaky start, look to be holding their own.
After 23 years, a city starved of top-flight football welcomed the Premier League again with open arms in August last year. The City Ground’s return to the top-flight brought a 1-0 win over West Ham United, although the newly-promoted side gained only four points from their first eight games.
Despite the negative noise from outside the club, Forest chose to back head coach Steve Cooper with an undisputed vote of confidence. In October, they awarded the Welshman a contract that runs until 2025. “It is now important that our focus is solely on football,” a statement from club’s official website read. You have to say they have done just that.
Memorable wins over Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur – the latter in the EFL Cup – have followed, with fans who were happy just to be back in the Premier League helping to turn the City Ground into a fortress. Forest have not lost at home in the league since 16 September, having collected 16 points from their last eight games there.
Bottom of the table after 15 matches, Forest are now up to 13th and confidence is growing that they will stay up.
That said, Forest’s away form has not been good. In eleven top-flight games on the road, Cooper’s side have won just once, scored just three goals and collected only four points. It is a record they will want to improve.
Perhaps the most amazing thing about the visitors is the fact they have almost completely changed out their squad since winning promotion by beating Huddersfield Town at Wembley last May. Of the eleven players who started their 1-0 victory, just four – captain Joe Worrall, Ryan Yates, Jack Colback and leading scorer Brennan Johnson – remain at the club and eligible to feature on Saturday.
That is because Forest have signed 29, yes twenty-nine, new players since then, breaking the record for the most signings made in a single transfer window last summer – 19 permanent and three loans – before adding five more permanent and two more on loan in January.
Among the new arrivals have been three former Hammers – Jesse Lingard, Cheikhou Kouyaté and André Ayew – as well as UEFA Champions League winning goalkeeper Keylor Navas, Brazil international duo Felipe and Gustavo Scarpa and experienced Premier League striker Chris Wood.
Still, there is work to be done and games to be won before Cooper, his sizeable squad and Forest’s ambitious owner Evangelos Marinakis can celebrate survival and begin planning for a second season in the Premier League.
Whatever happens, Saturday's visitors have certainly left no stone unturned in their quest to stay up.
Previous Meetings...
West Ham United and Nottingham Forest meet in the Premier League for just the tenth time on Saturday.
This is Forest's first-ever visit to London Stadium, making them the 31st different club to visit Stratford for a Premier League fixture since the Irons moved in 2016.
The Hammers have won four of the previous nine meetings, with three draws and just two victories for the Reds, including the reverse fixture at the City Ground back in August. That game was settled 1-0 in Forest's favour by Taiwo Awoniyi's first-half goal.
West Ham have won three of the four games in east London in the Premier League, but lost 1-0 at the Boleyn Ground on New Year's Day 1997.
Match Officials...
Referee: Jarred Gillett
Assistant Referees: Simon Long & Matthew Wilkes
Fourth Official: John Busby
VAR: Tony Harrington
Assistant VAR: Stuart Burt
Born in Gold Coast in Queensland, Australia, Jarred Gillett has been officiating in England since arriving on these shores in 2019.
The 36-year-old previously officiated at the highest level in his homeland, taking charge of five A-League Grand Finals and being named the Hyundai A-League Referee of the Year on five occasions.
Gillett initially started his work in England in the EFL in 2019 and became the first non-English or Irish referee to take charge of a Premier League game when he was appointed for the 1-1 draw between Watford and Newcastle United in September 2021.
This will be the third time he has refereed a West Ham United fixture and the second this season following the home fixture with Leicester City prior to the FIFA World Cup break in November.
Richard House Children's Hospice
Saturday's fixture is the selected Premier League match to show support for Club Charity Partner Richard House Children’s Hospice. The Hospice, based in Newham, provides palliative care to children with life-limiting and life-threatening conditions across London.
They currently support more than 300 families and today they need your help.
The cost of living crisis has devasted the families they support at what is already the most challenging time of their lives. In order to continue to provide vital palliative and respite care and relive further hardship for these families they need your support. Click here to donate to Richard House Children’s Hospice.
