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The relegation runners and riders
Nottingham Forest
Reasons for optimism: Nottingham Forest are 17th in the table, just above the relegation zone thanks to their superior goal difference to West Ham. They can pull further clear if they beat Tottenham on Sunday. They have won their last three matches against Spurs and are starting to show some signs of stability under Vítor Pereira. He is the club’s fourth manager this season, which is hardly ideal, but his focus on video analysis and one-to-one work have improved results. Forest came from behind twice to draw with Manchester City at the Etihad earlier this month and they have backed that up with another draw against Fulham and a win over Midtjylland in the Europa League. They are taking steps in the right direction at a pivotal point in the season.
Newcastle v Sunderland
Things are getting lively in the Tyne-Wear derby at St James’ Park. You can follow the last quarter of that match with Luke McLaughlin.
“Merely a relegation six-pointer?” wonders Gary Naylor. “On this one, I think Spartacus Mills speaks for us all.”
Gary, I love you, but iT CAN’T BE A SIX-POINTER IF THERE ARE MORE THAN TWO PARTIES INVOLVED! Or am I just being a joyless, philosophically confused pedant?
For the avoidance of doubt, that was a rhetorical question.
Aston Villa v West Ham team news
Aston Villa (4-2-3-1) Martinez; Cash, Konsa, Torres, Digne; Barkley, Onana; McGinn, Rogers, Sancho; Watkins.
Subs: Bizot, Mings, Tielemans, Buendia, Abraham, Douglas Luiz, Maatsen, Bogarde, Bailey.
West Ham (3-4-2-1) Hermansen; Todibo, Mavropanos, Disasi; Wan-Bissaka,
Soucek, Fernandes, Diouf; Bowen, Pablo Felipe; Castellanos.
Subs: Areola, Walker-Peters, Kilman, Wilson, Traore, Magassa, Scarles, Potts, Kante.
Referee Paul Tierney (Lancashire)
Team news
Xavi Simons is omitted from the Spurs side despite scoring twice against Atletico Madrid on Wednesday. He’s replaced by Richarlison, who was suspended for that game, while Kevin Danso and the fit-again Dominic Solanke come in for Radu Dragusin and Randal Kolo Muani.
Vitor Pereira used a number of his first-choice players from the bench in Denmark on Thursday, so there are eight changes to the XI that started against Midtjylland. Nikola Milenkovic and Omari Hutchinson are the survivors.
Tottenham Hotspur (3-4-2-1) Vicario; Danso, Romero, Van de Ven; Porro, Gray, Sarr, Spence; Richarlison, Tel; Solanke.
Subs: Kinsky, Dragusin, Joao Palhinha, Simons, Udogie, Bergvall, Gallagher,
Souza, Muani.
Nottm Forest (4-2-3-1) Sels; Aina, Milenkovic, Murillo, Williams; Sangare, Anderson; Hutchinson, Gibbs-White, Hudson-Odoi; Igor Jesus.
Subs: Ortega, Morato, Awoniyi, Ndoye, Dominguez, Yates, McAtee, Netz, Bakwa.
Referee Michael Oliver (Northumberland)
Preamble
Cor, it’s a bit snug down there. Nottingham Forest, Tottenham Hotspur and West Ham are separated by only one point, with Leeds United also involved in game of relegation Snakes and Ladders. Barring something unforseeable, one of those four big clubs will be playing Championship football next season. Forest, West Ham and Leeds are reasonably familiar with life in the second tier; Spurs haven’t experienced it since the 1970s.
There’s a fair way to go – seven games after today – but when the dust settles, the result of this afternoon’s match between Spurs and Forest may prove decisive. There’s not much else to say really: it’s a mustn’t-lose game for two teams who are waist-deep in the malodorous stuff.
Spurs will hope they turned a corner when Richarlison equalised in injury-time at Anfield, a result they followed with a losing victory over Atletico Madrid in midweek. Forest could have done without extra-time in Belgium on Thursday but they’ve won their last three matches against Spurs, including a 3-0 evisceration at the City Ground in December, and have probably played better than recent league results suggest.
Spurs and Forest would have gotten away with it if it wasn’t for their pesky ex. But Nuno Espirito Santo, sacked by both clubs, has revived an apparently doomed West Ham. Their win at Spurs in January was the start of an excellent run of 15 points in nine games, and another victory at Aston Villa today would move them out of the relegation places for the first time in 2026.
We’ll have goal updates from that match as well, but our main focus is on events in north London.
Kick off 2.15pm
