Nottingham Forest vs West Ham United Prediction: Tricky Trees to make it three in a row

Nottingham Forest and West Ham United both won last time out in the Premier League; however, at least one side will be taking less than three points on Saturday (15:00) as the Tricky Trees and Irons face off at the City Ground.

Below you can find my Nottingham Forest vs West Ham United prediction, complete with all the latest team news and match odds.

Team News

Nottingham Forest midfielder James Ward-Prowse returned from suspension to take a place on the bench in the 3-1 East Midlands derby win over Leicester City last time out, but the West Ham United loanee is ineligible to face his parent club on Saturday.

The 30-year-old's spot in the squad could be taken by Morgan Gibbs-White who has missed Forest's last two matches, although the Wolves Academy graduate's participation on the weekend is still in doubt.

Forest head coach Nuno Espirito Santo will also be crossing his fingers over the availability of seven-goal top goalscorer Chris Wood, who bagged a brace on his return to the King Power Stadium last Friday. The New Zealand striker is behind only Manchester City superstar Erling Haaland (11) and Brentford's Bryan Mbeumo (eight) in the Golden Boot race, and given he has scored 63.6 per cent of his side's Premier League total so far, there will be a desperation for him to make the starting XI on Saturday.

Elliot Anderson and Jota Silva are also doubts for Forest.

Football Odds

West Ham United head coach Julen Lopetegui dropped French goalkeeper Alphonse Areola to the bench for last Sunday's 2-1 win over Manchester United, and it looks likely that veteran shot-stopper Lukasz Fabianski will keep his place between the sticks at the City Ground.

Jean-Clair Todibo, Tomas Soucek and the Irons' first goalscorer last week, Crysencio Summerville, are all options for Lopetegui if he wishes to make changes to his starting XI.

Niclas Fullkrug, however, is still injured, while Mohammed Kudus will serve the second match of a three-game ban.

Nottingham Forest vs West Ham United Odds

Nottingham Forest are 6/5 to win a third-straight match, giving the hosts an implied probability of 45.5%, while West Ham United are 12/5, or a 29.4% chance, to make it back-to-back triumphs.

The draw is priced at 12/5, both teams to score at 4/6, and over 2.5 total goals at 5/6.

Wood and fellow Forest striker Taiwo Awoniyi (both 13/8) head the anytime goalscorer market, followed by West Ham captain Jarrod Bowen (13/5), who scored the Irons' winner against Man United from the penalty spot.

Match Result & Over/Under 3.5 Total Goals - Nottingham Forest & Under 3.5 @ 15/8

West Ham won their opening Premier League away game 2-0 at Crystal Palace on August 24 but have been pretty poor on the road since, drawing 1-1 with Fulham and Brentford either side of a 5-1 Carabao Cup hammering at the hands of Liverpool, while their last trip away from the London Stadium saw them thrashed 4-1 by rivals Tottenham Hotspur.

Saturday represents their first league game away from London this season, a pretty remarkable statistic considering the Irons have already played nine times.

They won't have fond memories of the City Ground from last season as Forest beat them 2-0 there in February this year via goals from Awoniyi and Callum Hudson-Odoi. The Tricky Trees also got the better of the Hammers at the City Ground in August 2022, winning 1-0 thanks to another effort from Awoniyi.

Forest have been brilliant so far, losing just one of their first nine Premier League games to sit sixth heading into the weekend.

Surprisingly, Nuno's side have won just once at home in 2024/25, but that was their last match at the City Ground, a 1-0 triumph against Crystal Palace on October 21.

They followed that victory with a 3-1 win at Leicester City in the East Midlands derby last time out, meaning they are now targeting a third-straight success on Saturday.

I tipped three points for Forest and under 3.5 total goals at the King Power Stadium, but the 21/10 bet narrowly lost as four goals were scored.

Undeterred, I'm backing the same selection on Saturday.

Forest have conceded just seven times in the league this term - only Liverpool (five) have let in fewer goals - and three of their four wins this season have been by 1-0 scorelines. Seven of their nine games (78 per cent) have seen under 3.5 total goals, while six (66.7 per cent) of West Ham's have ended with three or fewer strikes.

Lopetegui's side beat Man United last Sunday to make it two wins out of three, but both victories came at the London Stadium, and they were far from impressive against the Red Devils.

I see it being more of the same for the Irons in Nottingham, with a third successive defeat - potentially without scoring again - a real possibility. I'll take a Forest win and under 3.5 total goals at 15/8 to be on the safer side, though.

Bet Builder - Murillo (NFO) 2+ Shots & Nottingham Forest Over 3.5 Corners @ 7/1

Forest defender Murillo has established himself as one of the Premier League's best young centre-backs since joining from Corinthians in the summer of 2023, making 32 appearances in his maiden campaign to help the Tricky Trees secure their top-tier status for another year at least.

The 22-year-old has made an impressive start to the current campaign, too, with only heavyweights Liverpool conceding more goals after nine rounds.

It's not just the Brazilian's defensive abilities that have stood out, either, with the number five often found weaving past opposition players with some silky skills. Sometimes, his jaunts upfield even lead to a shot, while he has also proven to be a nuisance at set-pieces.

Murillo is averaging 0.6 shots per game this season, up slightly on the 0.5 he averaged in 2023/24, and that's after failing to register an effort in his first six matches.

Two of his five shots so far came in the 1-1 draw at Chelsea on October 6, and both were long-distance strikes at goal, one of them having to be kept out by Chelsea shot-stopper Robert Sanchez.

He tested the goalkeeper again the following game, with Crystal Palace's Dean Henderson saving a shot from him in a 1-0 win for Forest. Murillo's effort in that contest came from a corner, as did his two shots last time out at Leicester, though he failed to trouble the opposition's number one at the King Power.

Murillo shot once in the corresponding fixture last season but I fancy his chances of doubling that number this time around.

Forest have won at least three corners in six of their nine league games, including seven last time out at Leicester.

Their last two home matches, meanwhile, have produced six in each (against Palace and Fulham).

I fancy at least four Forest corners against a West Ham side averaging 5.7 corner concessions per game, and it wouldn't surprise me to see Murillo get on the end of one or two balls into the box, while he could also try his luck from distance again.

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