Latest Nottingham Forest verdict as Sean Dyche’s Reds beat Brentford 2-0 to secure huge Premier League win
Taiwo Awoniyi (second from left) celebrates scoring for Nottingham Forest against Brentford with Callum Hudson-Odoi, Neco Williams and Elliot Anderson
Taiwo Awoniyi (second from left) celebrates scoring for Nottingham Forest against Brentford with Callum Hudson-Odoi, Neco Williams and Elliot Anderson
They were all on their feet when the ball nestled into the far bottom corner of Brentford’s net with 10 minutes to go. The entire Nottingham Forest bench stood to applaud the moment.
The away end enjoyed it, too; as did the 10 other Reds players out there on the pitch. In fact, it would take a heart of stone not to raise a smile at this particular story.
But few could beat the beaming grin that spread right across Taiwo Awoniyi’s face after the final whistle at the Gtech Community Stadium. It said everything about what that goal meant to him.
The Nigerian has been through a lot over the past year or so. He still bears the scars from the surgery he underwent after rupturing his intestine when he collided with a post during Forest’s 2-2 draw with Leicester City last May.
For the Nigerian to find the back of the net in the Premier League for the first time since January 6, 2025, was quite special. Football can be a cynical, unforgiving world at times but here was a genuinely heartwarming tale played out in the capital.
Not only that, Awoniyi’s strike also put the seal on three massive points for Sean Dyche’s side. Below, NottinghamshireLive looks at some of the big talking points from Sunday’s 2-0 win over the Bees.
Goals (and indeed goalscoring chances) have not always been easy to come by for the Reds this season. Lorenzo Lucca was signed on loan from Napoli on Friday with the aim of improving matters on that front and to ease a striker shortage.
Dyche described the Italian as a “target man” whose heading ability should come in handy for Forest’s tactic of flooding the box with crosses. The Italian was not registered in time to be involved against the Bees, but the two other available forwards in the squad both delivered in his absence.
Igor Jesus opened the scoring 12 minutes in with a superb bit of play. It was the Brazilian’s second Premier League goal but his ninth in total for the club.
Among English top-flight players, only Manchester City’s Erling Haaland (12) has bagged more away goals in all competitions than Jesus (eight). The Forest man is an incredibly hard worker and doesn’t always get the rewards (or indeed the support) for his efforts, but when teed up brilliantly by Ola Aina he made the most of it this time.
Jesus will no doubt be pleased to have Lucca help shoulder the burden, given the amount of minutes he has had to play recently. It remains to be seen whether Awoniyi will still be at the City Ground by the end of the January window. The front man showed he still has something to offer, but if he does depart he will do so on a high and with plenty of good wishes.
The former Union Berlin man got a big hug from Morgan Gibbs-White, who had played the ball to him, as the duo celebrated the moment. It could prove to be a crucial goal in the context of the Reds’ relegation battle.
Defending defenders
Sunday’s win required an almighty team effort from the visitors, particularly when they were on the back foot. After a positive opening spell, they found themselves under pressure before half-time and for much of the second period.
Brentford took a leaf out of Dyche’s book and tried to bombard Forest’s box with crosses – attempting 35 of them in total. But Matz Sels had only one save to make, and that came from Dango Ouattara being put clean through.
Even if the visitors could be a little careless with the ball at times, defensively they dealt with their opponents very well. Nikola Milenkovic and Murillo earned praise from Dyche afterwards for their “excellent” contribution, while he also singled out Ibrahim Sangare for helping to shield the back line.
Clean-sheets and solidity are priorities for Dyche. It took a gutsy display from his team to notch up this shut-out, but it provided the platform for the Reds to become only the second team to win at the Gtech this season – following in the footsteps of Manchester City.
Dyche insisted afterwards he felt no sense of frustration that Sunday’s battling performance and big result came on the back of one quite the opposite in midweek. It is difficult to get away from the crux of the issue, though.
Forest had departed Portugal with jeers and boos ringing in their ears after a dismal evening in their 1-0 Europa League defeat to Braga. At full-time on Sunday, after a display full of character, the team stood in front of the away end and soaked up the well-deserved applause.
The line-ups for the two matches were very different, with Dyche making seven changes. It was the same starting XI against Brentford as had claimed an excellent 0-0 draw at home to Arsenal in the previous league outing.
Dyche has a core group of players – mostly made up of those who were at the heart of last term’s exploits – who have shown they can compete with anyone and clinch some important results. But beyond that, the squad depth is not there – as has been demonstrated in cup competitions.
“The main group who played, in the sense of the last three (league) games, delivered a really good performance,” Dyche said. “They are a bit more rounded in their Premier League knowledge.”
The point has been consistently made by Dyche that players who arrived in the summer need time to find their feet. To ensure the first-choice group don’t suffer from burnout and for Forest to go far in Europe while fighting for survival, further January trading might be required.
As was the case prior to their stalemate with Arsenal, results elsewhere put pressure on the Reds going into Sunday. West Ham United had closed the gap on Dyche’s men to two points with victory the previous day.
Forest showed they are up for the fight, though. It was a positive response to a thoroughly miserable night in Portugal.
Dyche feels a corner has been turned after a previously sticky spell in the league. Seven points from three games, following a four-match losing streak, is certainly a very good return.
It wasn’t pretty from the visitors at the weekend but on this occasion the result was all that really mattered. Five points clear of the relegation zone, the Reds’ upcoming schedule gives them a huge opportunity to create a bit of breathing space.
No doubt it will be a much-changed line-up when Ferencvaros visit the City Ground for Forest’s final league phase fixture in the Europa League on Thursday. Given there is now not a great deal riding on that one, the big guns will surely be given a rest ahead of crucial league games against Crystal Palace, Leeds United and Wolverhampton Wanderers.
That run could prove to be a defining one in the Reds’ survival battle. Their league form means they should go into it with confidence high and team spirit strong.
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