Forest's Striker Scores Twice as Nottingham Forest Conclude European Campaign with Victory over Hungarian Opponents
At a Glance
- The home side were previously qualified to the knockout round.
- Bence Otvos own goal gives hosts a first-half lead.
- The striker's European strike puts the team in control.
- Forward nets again with a clinical effort in the latter period.
- James McAtee rounds off a excellent display with a spot-kick.
The Brazilian attacker scored twice as Nottingham Forest rounded off the league phase of the European competition with a convincing triumph against their Hungarian visitors at the home stadium.
The hosts had previously guaranteed a berth in the knockout round play-offs and entered this fixture with a small chance of making the league's elite, although they required other matches to go their way.
Those results failed to materialize but this confident display will give the supporters belief that their team can come through the two-legged play-off to reach the last 16.
A Ferencvaros midfielder struck the upright with a header inside the first 10 minutes for the away team – coached by former Tottenham striker Robbie Keane – but it was all Forest from then on.
They opened the scoring in the 17th minute when a delivery from midfield was deflected in by Bence Otvos and doubled the lead shortly after – the striker firing an effort in at the back post for his 10th goal of the season.
The forward's eleventh goal arrived early in the second half when he made a perfectly-timed run to escape the defence and then place a shot beyond the goalkeeper.
The third strike killed off Ferencvaros' hopes of making a comeback and instead the hosts scored again when the impressive James McAtee converted a spot-kick after a foul by the unfortunate Otvos inside the penalty area on the winger.
The Europa League knockout phase play-off lottery is scheduled on Friday, 30 January (12:00 GMT), where Forest could be drawn against either the Turkish side or the Greek club.
"It is not just the result, there was that atmosphere about it. I want these players to do well as a unit, the whole squad," said manager Sean Dyche.
"This is another step, but it is a good one."
Team Breakdown: Jesus Catches Eye as New Signing Watches On
Igor Jesus has been a revelation for Forest in Europe this season with half of his eleven strikes coming in the Europa League.
This double also means he has scored a trio of strikes in his previous two outings and the threat of a challenge for his position in the forward line could be providing motivation.
Italian forward Lorenzo Lucca was recently brought in temporarily and he was observing this match from the directors' box.
That may well have been on the striker's thoughts as he was outstanding against the opposition, delivering two superb finishes and overall being a constant threat to the visitors' defence with his pace and movement.
The forward was not alone in impressing, with McAtee producing his best performance in a Nottingham Forest shirt since joining from the champions last summer, while Dan Ndoye also impressed.
These encouraging performances will give the club some renewed optimism as they switch focus to increasing the gap from the bottom three when they welcome Crystal Palace on Sunday.
"The minimum requirement is a response," added Dyche.
"I have always trusted their work ethic or their dedication or honesty. It is just about displaying your ability.
"James was very good and Dan Ndoye was incredibly lively. Jesus got another couple and these are good signs."
Star Performer
Number: 19 The Striker
Match rating: 9.10
Forest Key Performers
- Igor Jesus: Rating 9.1
- #24: Average Rating 8.75
- #22: Rating 8.63
- #6: Rating 8.01
- N. Milenković: Average Rating 7.94
The Visitors Ratings
- B. Yusuf: Average Rating 4.14
- #66: Average Rating 4.12
- K. Zachariassen: Rating 4.1
After the opportunity to rate players has closed, the rating shown is the average from all the submissions.