Forest's Striker Fires Twice as Nottingham Forest Round Off Europa League Campaign with Victory over Hungarian Opponents
Match Summary
- The home side were already through to the knockout round.
- A Ferencvaros defender deflection gives hosts a first-half lead.
- The striker's fifth goal in Europe puts Forest in command.
- Forward adds a third with a clinical effort in the second half.
- James McAtee caps a great display with a penalty.
The Brazilian attacker scored twice as the Premier League side rounded off the league phase of the European competition with a comfortable win against Ferencvaros at the City Ground.
The hosts had already secured a berth in the next qualifying round and entered this game with a slim possibility of making the league's elite, although they needed other matches to go their way.
Those results failed to materialize but this assured performance will give Forest fans belief that their side can come through the home-and-away tie to advance to the last 16.
Kristoffer Zachariassen did hit the post with a header inside the opening stages for the away team – who are managed by former Tottenham striker Robbie Keane – but it was dominantly the home side from that point forward.
Forest opened the scoring in the 17th minute when Ryan Yates' cross was turned into his own net by the defender and doubled the lead shortly after – the striker firing an effort in at the back post for his tenth strike of the season.
The forward's 11th arrived soon after the restart when he timed a run perfectly to break clear of the defence and then place a shot past the shot-stopper.
The third strike ended Ferencvaros' aspirations of making a comeback and instead the hosts scored again when the impressive McAtee scored from a spot-kick after a foul by the unfortunate Otvos inside the penalty area on the winger.
Europe's secondary club competition qualifying round lottery is scheduled on the final Friday of January (12:00 GMT), where Forest could be drawn against either the Turkish side or the Greek club.
"It is not just the scoreline, there was that atmosphere about it. I want these guys to do collectively well, the entire team," said Forest boss Sean Dyche.
"That was another stride forward, but it is a positive one."
Forest Analysis: Striker Shines as Recent Arrival Observes from Stands
Jesus has been a standout performer for Forest in Europe this season with half of his 11 goals coming in the tournament.
His brace also means he has scored three goals in his previous two outings and the prospect of a challenge for his position in the forward line could be providing motivation.
Italian forward Lorenzo Lucca was last week brought in temporarily and he was observing this game from the stands.
That may well have been on Jesus' thoughts as he was impressive against Ferencvaros, delivering two superb goals and overall being a constant threat to the visitors' defence with his speed and runs.
Jesus was not the only one in catching the eye, with James McAtee turning in his finest display in a Forest jersey since joining from the champions in the previous transfer window, while Dan Ndoye also performed well.
These encouraging performances will give the club some fresh hope as they turn their attention to increasing the gap from the bottom three when they host Crystal Palace on the weekend.
"All you can ask for is a response," added Dyche.
"I've never questioned their work ethic or their loyalty or honesty. It is just about displaying your quality.
"McAtee was very good and Dan was super sharp. Jesus got another two and these are good signs."
Star Performer
Number: 19 The Striker
Average rating: 9.1
Forest Top Players
- Igor Jesus: Rating 9.10
- #24: Rating 8.8
- #22: Rating 8.6
- I. Sangaré: Rating 8.0
- N. Milenković: Rating 7.9
The Visitors Ratings
- #11: Average Rating 4.14
- Júlio Romão: Average Rating 4.12
- #16: Average Rating 4.09
After the opportunity to rate players has closed, the score displayed is the mean from all the submissions.
