Nottingham Forest keep top-five hopes alive, Fulham beat Brentford
Nottingham Forest won 2-1 at West Ham, thereby keeping alive their hopes of reaching the Champions League for the first time since the 1980-81 season. To make that happen, they must beat Chelsea in the final round and wait for their rivals to stumble.
Nuno EspĂrito Santo’s side opened the scoring in the 11th minute after a serious error by West Ham goalkeeper Alphonse Areola. Areola’s inaccurate pass in the box allowed Morgan Gibbs-White to score into an empty net.
After scoring, Gibbs-White held up a shirt bearing Taiwo Awoniyi’s name in tribute to his teammate who underwent emergency abdominal surgery following an injury in the match against Leicester last week.
Nikola Milenkovic doubled Forest’s lead in the 61st minute from a set piece by Anthony Elanga. Although Jarrod Bowen pulled one back for West Ham in the 86th minute, it was not enough to turn the game around. Forest remain in seventh place & still have a chance of breaking into the top five.
“It’s fantastic,” said Nuno. “We’re going to enjoy the week ahead. If someone had said at the start of the season that Forest were going to be in the Champions League, I think everyone would have signed on to that.”
In the west London derby, Fulham beat Brentford 3-2 to keep alive their hopes of finishing in the top eight. Raul Jimenez opened the scoring for Fulham in the 16th minute with a header, before Bryan Mbeumo equalised for the hosts six minutes later with his 19th goal of the season.
Brentford had a chance to take the lead when Joachim Andersen fouled Kevin Schade, but goalkeeper Bernd Leno saved Mbeumo’s shot. Yoane Wissa put Brentford ahead in the 43rd minute, but Fulham came back strongly in the second half. Tom Cairney equalised in the 68th minute, before Harry Wilson sealed the win with a fine long-range strike just two minutes later.
In another crucial game, Declan Rice scored the only goal as Arsenal beat Newcastle in the battle between second and third, securing a top-five finish for Mikel Arteta’s side – although they again finished the season without a trophy.
Newcastle are still in the hunt for a Champions League spot next season after the defeat. They are just one point ahead of Nottingham Forest, but if they win against Everton in the final round, Eddie Howe’s side will likely finish in the top four thanks to a superior goal difference over Aston Villa.
The game against Newcastle was also the last time Goodison Park hosted an Everton men’s game – after 132 years – before they move to a new 52,000-capacity stadium next season.
Legendary Wayne Rooney and many famous former Everton players attended this historic farewell day. Iliman Ndiaye was the hero when he scored two goals in the first half to help Everton win and close the emotional Goodison era.
Manager David Moyes shared: “The atmosphere is special. The fans are fantastic. We aim to win and say goodbye to Goodison in the best way.”
Meanwhile, Jamie Vardy bid an emotional farewell to Leicester City by scoring his 200th goal for the club in a 2-0 win over Ipswich.