Tim Steidten is also under increasing pressure and his West Ham future is far from secure. Lopetegui was hand-picked by David Sullivan to replace David Moyes after he held face-to-face talks with the Spaniard before last season finished.

Even more concerning for West Ham than a lack of points is the worrying performances in several of their defeats. Lopetegui's side appeared clueless during a 3-0 home loss to Chelsea in September, they were torn apart at Tottenham in October and then hammered at Nottingham Forest last weekend.

Forest are everything their visitors aspire to be. They have a potent striker, a settled midfield, pace on the flanks and a solid defence