West Ham v Nottingham Forest: Back Bowen to make his mark at 7/5 | OneFootball

English Premier League

West Ham have only once won back-to-back league games this season

Nottingham Forest look to keep their top-five Premier League hopes alive when they travel to West Ham on Sunday but Betfair writer Mark O'Haire is backing a home favourite to play a starring role at the London Stadium.

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West Ham v Nottingham ForestSunday May 18, 14:15Live on Sky Sports

Hammers impress at Old Trafford

West Ham arrested an eight-game winless run, scoring either side of halftime through Tomas Soucek and Jarrod Bowen to condemn Manchester United to a deserved 2-0 defeat at Old Trafford last weekend. Setting up to frustrate their hosts, the Hammers defended effectively and were equally efficient in possession to seal a morale-boosting success.

Graham Potter was understandably enthused by his side's efforts, saying: "Sometimes we talk about performances a lot as coaches, but results are nice. We've been in the middle of a really tough run. Today was great in that regard. The players executed things really well. Good intelligence. They showed all the things they needed to win a football match."

Edson Alvarez returned to the squad at Man Utd, whilst Lucas Paqueta dropped to the bench with Potter suggesting the Brazilian is going through a "tough" time lately. Alvarez, Niclas Fullkrug, Carlos Soler and Emerson Palmieri are all hoping to be involved from the off but Crysencio Summerville and Michail Antonio remain long-term absentees.

Forest frustrated by East Midlands rivals

Nottingham Forest missed the opportunity to move into the Champions League positions as they conceded a late equaliser in a frustrating 2-2 draw against Leicester last weekend. The already-relegated visitors equalised with eight minutes left on the clock at the City Ground after goals from Chris Wood and Morgan Gibbs-White had put the Reds in front.

Victory would have enabled Forest to capitalise on Chelsea's defeat earlier in the day, but a draw leaves the Tricky Trees one point off fifth going into the penultimate round. Speaking post-match, Nuno Espirito Santo admitted, "The goal was avoidable, we should have done much better. That's the frustration. I think we should have won this game. It's a bad day."

Injuries have hampered the Reds lately with centre-back Murillo missing the Leicester match, though the Brazilian could return for Sunday's capital showdown. Winger Callum Hudson-Odoi is rated doubtful but forward Taiwo Awoniyi is definitely absent after undergoing surgery on an abdominal injury sustained in the Foxes clash weekend.

Market makes Reds favourites

Nottingham Forest have won the last two Premier League meetings with West Ham and are looking to complete their first league double over the Hammers since 1983-84. However, the Tricky Trees have been turned over in five of their past six trips to West Ham, with the exception being a 1-0 success secured way back in January 1997.

West Ham 2.84 won 2-0 at Man Utd last time out but have only once managed to win back-to-back Premier League contests this term. The Irons have played out three successive draws at the London Stadium and have tabled only three triumphs in 16 outings under Graham Potter's watch - the hosts are W2-D5-L12 when facing top-half opposition.

Nottingham Forest 2.74 have posted W1-D2-L3 across their past six league dates, a run of results that's seen the Reds drop from third to seventh in the EPL standings. However, the Tricky Trees have impressed against the lesser lights this term, returning W12-D2-L1 when facing sides in 13th and below, including a flawless W7-D0-L0 record on the road.

Bowen to make key contribution

Despite their eye-catching record going to bottom-half dwellers in Premier League fixtures, Nottingham Forest make little appeal as away-day favourites. The Reds' recent form, coupled with injuries, fatigue and the pressure of the top-five battle contributing to a lack of faith in the visitors at the available lines and prices. The Tricky Trees have also been making defensive errors more regularly.

The once rock-solid rearguard has managed a solitary shutout in eight top-flight tussles, conceding 1.66 Expected Goals (xG) per-game. With Forest recording just one shutout on their travels since January, West Ham's in-form forward Jarrod Bowen stands-out in the Score or Assist market with 7/5 available on the England international.

Bowen has now had six goal involvements in his last six Premier League encounters, scoring in each of his last three London Stadium outings. The Irons ace is avergaing an impressive 0.46 xG + xA average per-90 across the campaign, boasting 0.58 goal contributions per-90 with our proposed play paying-out in an impressive 15 (47%) of his 32 EPL starts.

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Back Jarrod Bowen to score or assist @ 7/5