If Nottingham Forest didn’t have already got the Premier League’s consideration, it certain does now.
Final season’s relegation fighters destroyed a good Brighton & Hove Albion aspect 7-0 on Saturday. They now sit third within the league, degree on factors with second-place Arsenal.
They’re solely 9 factors off leaders Liverpool. With 14 video games remaining, many nonetheless marvel if Forest is a contender or a pretender.
Their constant goal-scoring, defensive presence and administration show that the Reds can severely push for the title.
Forest, like Liverpool and Manchester Metropolis, have a reliable purpose scorer essential to compete on the prime of the desk. Striker Chris Wooden has 17 targets this season, together with a hat trick Saturday.
Wooden is an old-school middle ahead who depends on his peak and positioning to attain targets. Forest performs to his strengths as a comparatively direct workforce that presses onerous and counters rapidly. The aspect has solely been held scoreless 4 instances this season.
With Arsenal struggling to depend on a real striker, Forest’s constant strategy could possibly be the distinction because the season wanes.
Moreover, the previous adage of “protection wins championships” rings true within the Premier League. Groups in the direction of the highest of the league are normally prime in shutouts as properly.
Forest’s protection is excellent this season. The workforce leads the Premier League in shutouts with 10 in 24 video games. The middle again pairing of Murillo and Nikola Milenkovic proves a superb piece of recruitment.
Maybe the workforce’s standout performer is goalkeeper Matz Sels. Introduced into the membership final January, he and Forest hobbled to a Seventeenth-place end, one spot above the relegation zone.
Sels is flying this season, actually. His save percentage is over 75 p.c, the most effective within the Premier League for any goalkeeper enjoying greater than seven video games.
Regardless of the lopsided scoreline, he needed to make a number of stellar saves in Saturday’s win, together with a fingertip contact onto the crossbar from Brighton’s Danny Welbeck.
Supervisor Nuno Espírito Santo deserves large credit score as properly. He got here to Forest in December of 2023, obtained the membership to security and by no means seemed again. He’s an skilled Premier League supervisor who’s getting the most effective out of formerly-forgotten gamers.
Underneath Nuno, Anthony Elanga shines as a playmaker in methods he by no means did at Manchester United. He had three assists Saturday and leads the workforce for the season with six.
Morgan Gibbs-White, who performed below Nuno at Wolverhampton Wanderers earlier in his profession, is now a mature, hardworking captain. Scoring on what was his one hundredth look for Forest Saturday, he now has scored at the least 5 targets in each season with the membership.
Many discounted Forest after dropping 5-0 to Bournemouth in its final sport. The squad responded emphatically on Saturday, which is a testomony to their aggressive spirit and high quality teaching.
When requested about his workforce’s championship-caliber response to adversity, Nuno stored his eyes on the prize, assuring the media,
“Subsequent week, we’ll strive it once more.”
