David Moyes had words of praise for Nottingham Forest’s intensity and white-hot atmosphere during West Ham United’s 1-0 defeat to the Premier League newcomers at the City Ground, speaking to Football London.
Whoever said change was something to fear?
During their first top-flight match on the banks of the Trent since the Backstreet Boys and Basement Jaxx were battling it out for the number one spot in the UK charts, a team containing no fewer than eight new players clawed their way to victory; A victory which has fuelled hopes of a successful survival bid.
Yes, Nottingham Forest rode their luck. Scott McKenna, Moyes says, was fortunate in the extreme to avoid a straight red card. Declan Rice missed a penalty, Said Benrahma rattled the bar and VAR played it’s part too.
But if Forest attack every game with such desire and intensity – roared on by a vociferous home crowd – then you can expect a few more one goal wins over the next couple of months.
Nottingham Forest 1-0 West Ham United
“I thought Notts Forest started well,” Moyes said, his Hammers side going down to Taiwo Awoniyi’s bundled winner on the stroke of half-time.
“They were powerful, strong, wanted to pick up the first ball and the second ball and put us under pressure. We didn’t cope particularly well in the opening 20 minutes with that, I thought.
“We were expecting it to be tough and we knew they were going to come out (quickly),” Moyes adds, via the club’s official website. “And it was a terrific atmosphere in here. It’s a great old stadium, so it’s what we expected.
“When you play in that atmosphere, it’s great for them and it’s great for their players here. It shows you how much they’ve been waiting to get top flight football here.
“We didn’t cope with it particularly well in the opening 20 minutes but we grew into the game and got a bit better, without being spectacular.”
Awoniyi’s goal was Forest’s first as a Premier League team since 1999. Dean Henderson was solid between the sticks, Orel Mangala and Lewis O’Brien appear to have that perfect blend of technique and tenacity, while wing-backs Harry Toffolo and Neco Williams should pose problems for plenty of backlines at this level.
Further additions are expected too. Talks with Atalanta’s Ruslan Malinovskyi are underway, while Neal Maupay should join from Brighton.
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