Forest's Striker Scores a Brace as Nottingham Forest Round Off European Campaign with Victory over Hungarian Opponents
At a Glance
- Forest were already through to the knockout round.
- A Ferencvaros defender deflection gives Nottingham Forest a first-half lead.
- The striker's fifth goal in Europe puts the team in control.
- Striker adds a third with a clinical effort in the second half.
- The midfielder rounds off a excellent display with a penalty.
The Brazilian attacker found the net on two occasions as the Premier League side rounded off the league phase of the European competition with a comfortable win against their Hungarian visitors at the home stadium.
Forest had previously guaranteed a place in the knockout round play-offs and went into this fixture with a slim possibility of making the league's elite, although they needed other matches to fall in their favor.
Those results failed to materialize but this assured display will give Forest fans confidence that their side can come through the two-legged play-off to advance to the last 16.
Kristoffer Zachariassen struck the post with a header inside the opening stages for the away team – coached by former Tottenham striker Robbie Keane – but it was dominantly the home side from then on.
They opened the scoring in the early stages when a delivery from midfield was deflected in by Bence Otvos and added a second four minutes later – Jesus squeezing a shot in at the back post for his tenth strike of the campaign.
The forward's eleventh goal arrived soon after the restart when he timed a run perfectly to break clear of the defence and then drive an effort beyond the goalkeeper.
The third strike killed off the visitors' aspirations of making a comeback and instead the hosts added a fourth when the excellent James McAtee scored from a penalty after a infringement by the hapless Bence Otvos inside the penalty area on the winger.
The Europa League knockout phase play-off draw takes place on the final Friday of January (midday UK time), where Nottingham Forest might face either Fenerbahce or the Greek club.
"It's more than the result, there was that feel about it. I want these guys to do collectively well, the whole squad," said Forest boss Sean Dyche.
"That was another stride forward, but it is a good step."
Team Breakdown: Jesus Catches Eye as Recent Arrival Watches On
Igor Jesus has been a standout performer for Forest in European competition this season with six of his eleven strikes coming in the tournament.
His brace also means he has scored three goals in his last two games and the prospect of a challenge for his place in attack could be spurring him on.
Napoli striker Lorenzo Lucca was recently brought in temporarily and he was watching this game from the stands.
That may well have been on the striker's mind as he was impressive against Ferencvaros, delivering two excellent goals and overall being a menace to the visitors' defence with his speed and movement.
Jesus was not alone in impressing, with McAtee turning in his finest display in a Forest jersey since signing from the champions in the previous transfer window, while the Swiss international also performed well.
Such positive showings will give the club some fresh hope as they turn their attention to pulling further away from the Premier League relegation zone when they welcome Crystal Palace on Sunday.
"All you can ask for is a reaction," continued the manager.
"I have always trusted their commitment or their loyalty or integrity. It is just go and show your ability.
"James was very good and Dan Ndoye was super sharp. Jesus got another two and these are positive indicators."
Star Performer
#19 The Striker
Match rating: 9.1
Forest Top Players
- #19: Average Rating 9.10
- #24: Rating 8.75
- #22: Average Rating 8.63
- I. Sangaré: Average Rating 8.0
- N. Milenković: Average Rating 7.9
The Visitors Ratings
- B. Yusuf: Rating 4.14
- #66: Average Rating 4.1
- K. Zachariassen: Rating 4.1
Once the chance to submit ratings has closed, the rating shown is the average from all the submissions.
