West Ham United strolled to victory at the City Ground this afternoon with a throughly professional performance.
Forest - who went into the game having lost just two of their last 44 Championship home games - were simply blown away by a West Ham side who maintained their 100 per cent record away from home.The writing was on the wall for the home side as early as the third minute when a Julien Faubert cross caused panic in the Forest defence before eventually being cleared.
That signalled a response from Forest who wasted two good chances to open the scoring. Robbie Findlay nodded wide from just six yards out on 12 minutes before Lewis McGugan missed an easier chance just four minutes later having found himself space before firing wildly over the bar.
Those missed opportunities were always likely to haunt Forest with West Ham beginning to look dangerous in attack. However the breakthrough actually came courtesy of Forest captain Chambers, who inadvertantly turned a Matt Taylor centre into his own net with 21 minutes on the clock.
Just seconds after McGugan had wasted another good chance West Ham went two ahead through captain Kevin Nolan. A Taylor corner from the left found an unmarked James Tomkins at the back post. The centre half's header back towards goal found Nolan, who was left with a simple finish.
As bad as their defending was proving to be, Forest were continuing to cause United problems at the other end. However they continued to squander their best chances and none more so than when Miller, with just Green to beat, passed his effort wise of the post.
They were punished once again when Cole, who had played a prominent role in both of West Ham's goals added a third on 32 minutes as West Ham threatened to run away with the game.
Once again the goal came from a set-piece; Taylor's corner found its way to Joey O'Brien, lurking on the edge of the box. His delivery to the back post was header towards goal by Nolan and Cole was left with a simple finish at the opposite post.
It could have been even worse for the home side ahead of the break had Nolan converted a straightforward chance with four minutes of the half remaining. Having been played in at the back post - and totally unmarked - West Ham's captain screwed his shot wide of the post, with the goal at his mercy.
Forest began the second half with a flurry of subs but were still finding it difficult to make a breakthrough with West Ham's defence, superbly marshalled by James Tomkins once again, standing firm.
However it was the home side who were to score next when Robbie Findlay gave Forest a glimmer of hope with a tap-in on 70 minutes following some good work on the left by former Hammer Chris Cohen.
Despite the goal giving the home side - and their supporters - a major boost, West Ham gave the impression that they were capable of stepping up a gear should it be required - and that was exactly what happened when, just five minutes after Findlay's goal, Winston Reid stepped up to score his first of the season.
Once again Forest were guilty of failing to clear their lines and a half-cleared corner fell to Matt Taylor, lurking on the edge of the box.
His precise delivery to the far post left Winston Reid, who had remained in an advanced position following the corner to stab home West Ham's fourth of the afternoon - all of which came from inside the six-yard box.
The win - which was equally enjoyed by the travelling fans who taunted the home crowd with chants of 'is there a fire drill?' as the ground emptied - lifts Sam Allardyce's squad up into fifth place in the Championship.
The Irons are now just three points behind early pace-setters Brighton, who have 13 points from their opening five fixtures.
Next up for West Ham is the visit of Portsmouth next Saturday for a rare but welcome 3pm kick-off, when West Ham will be seeking to record their first home game of the season having failed to do so against Cardiff, Leeds and Aldershot.
All four goals, all scored from within the six yard box (left-right, top-bottom)
Nottingham Forest 1 West Ham Utd 4: Match facts
West Ham Utd: Green, O'Brien, McCartney, Tomkins, W Reid, Noble, Collison (Faye 75), Nolan, Taylor, Faubert, Cole (Piquionne 68).
Subs not used: Boffin, Stanislas, Carew.
Goals: Chambers (og 21), Nolan (24), Cole (32), W Reid (77).
Booked: Nolan (72), Faubert (89).
Nottingham Forest: Camp, Gunter, Morgan, Chambers, Cohen, Majewski (Derbyshire 64), Boateng (Lynch 59), Greening, McGugan (A Reid 64), Findley, Miller.
Subs not used: Smith, Garner.
Goals: Findley (70).
Booked: Boateng (38), A Reid (89).
Referee: Graham Salisbury.
Attendance: 21,379.
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