Morgan Gibbs-White and Elliot Anderson both scored stunning goals as Nottingham Forest fought back twice to draw 2-2 at Manchester City, proving they have the quality and capability to survive Premier League relegation — they just need to believe it. George Edwards was at the match
Nights like last night proved something Nottingham Forest have only shown intermittently this season — that they have the quality to survive in the Premier League.
The spirit to fight back twice from a goal down at a place they hadn’t scored at for 17 years. The quality of both goals — the Reds’ only shots on target in the second half against Manchester City. The discipline and focus to keep the host’s barrage of attacks out and cling on to a precious point, right until the last kick.
Those elements combined ensured a crucial point was added to Forest’s tally, keeping their heads just above water in the relegation scrap, as West Ham won at Fulham at the same time.
Visiting the Etihad felt like a write-off. But this Premier League season has proven the competitiveness of the division and that no result can be fully set in stone before a ball is kicked.
However, despite memorably beating Liverpool 3-0 in the not too distant past, Forest getting even close to a result in Manchester felt far-fetched, given the stagnation of their league performances and the prowess of their hosts.
But anything can happen in football, and what happened at the Etihad wasn’t in many people’s scripts.
Until the last moment, Forest proved their worth. As the seven minutes of stoppage time were exceeded, a point was clasped in their hands when the penalty area descended into chaos. Everyone in red plus their goalkeeper scrambled towards the ball except Murillo, who had the composure to realise Matz Sels’ rush of blood and head to the line, scrambling the ball to safety with the last meaningful kick of the game.
Murillo ended the match at left wing-back as Vitor Pereira ushered his defensive cavalry on to bring the point home, despite already fielding a more cautious side than before.
The switch to a back three for the final 30 minutes at Brighton worked; Forest were comfortable defensively and more fluid in attack despite being too blunt in the final third to score an equaliser as they lost 2-1.
That cameo was a perfect dress rehearsal for a visit to the Etihad, Jair Cunha seamlessly slotting in alongside Murillo and Nikola Milenkovic as the back three continued. Very few defences will look totally bulletproof against City, but Cunha’s physicality and assurance on the ball were refreshing when contrasted to the rash play of Morato — ahead of his Brazilian counterpart as Forest’s go-to back up defender — has shown for much of the campaign.
Seven shots on target was all the hosts could muster, despite creating five big chances and having 44 touches in Forest’s penalty area. They saw six efforts blocked and only had an xG of 0.096 per shot, showing the lengths Forest took to starve City of meaningful chances.
For all their positive defensive work, Forest were always liable to be undone, going behind in the 31st minute through Antoine Semenyo and again in the 62nd after Rodri planted home from a corner. But Forest’s personality shone through as they forged two equalisers, goals that exhibited the genuine quality they have both as a team and as individuals.
Gibbs-White often frustrates with the number of flicks and tricks that fail to come off, but the nature of his back-to-goal back-heel to score Forest’s first proved how important his glorious unpredictability is to his game and the Reds’ success.
That instinctive play saw rapturous and unexpected celebrations in the away end, Forest’s captain notching his eighth of the season and his second in as many games, stepping forward once again when his club needed him most.
As they did at Brighton, the Reds quickly fell behind again, but they weren’t to be felled as fellow England international Elliot Anderson took to the stage to emphatically grab Forest’s second, a goal which proved the side’s Premier League class.
They were patient in possession, switching the ball from right to left, winning 50/50s to maintain the ball and passing and moving into space. The basics of football, maybe, but patterns their hosts were doing all evening. Then the authority came, a firm one-two between Anderson and Callum Hudson-Odoi before the former strode towards goal and picked out the far corner from 25 yards with the instep of his right foot.
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But how come this fight back was possible at City where, in similar circumstances, it wasn’t at Brighton?
Getting up for the bigger games but faltering against teams in mid-table has defined Forest’s campaign. A vital point maybe, but at the end of the day it was only a point, and Forest had to be at their absolute best to grasp it. The same can be said of their battling 0-0 draw against Arsenal, or their 2-2 draw with Manchester United.
Only rarely do you catch a side out in the circumstances Forest won at Anfield. But time and again they have fallen short of the mark in winnable games. Games that, if they had performed with the focus and heart they did at the Etihad, they’ve proved they have the quality to win — as shown by a 3-0 win against Spurs or a 2-0 victory at Brentford, for example.
The point keeps Forest’s head above the parapet, just.
Two months ago, after beating and going seven points clear of West Ham, their relegation shudders seemed distant. But since then Forest have lost themselves and the Hammers have grown in every way. Without Anderson’s equaliser they would be sat in the bottom three; with it, they remain out of it by four goals.
Next in the league the fixtures reverse, as Forest host Fulham while City travel to West Ham. Last night, Forest proved they have the tools and competency of a Premier League side, they must now show it every time they take to the field, with nine games left to retain their spot in England’s top division.
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