- Nottingham Forest continued their impressive season with a 2-0 win over Brentford
- Ola Aina and Anthony Elanaga scored as Forest rose to third
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Just as impressive as their victories at Anfield and Old Trafford, Champions League chasers Nottingham Forest ended Brentford’s unbeaten home record with another away masterclass.
Forest love to travel under Nuno Espirito Santo and only Chelsea have collected more points on the road this season.
Goals in each half from Ola Aina and Anthony Elanga completed a textbook example of a smash-and-grab after Brentford hit their heads against a brick wall in the opening half-hour and were once again hunting for a comeback later.
For Elanga, the superb second goal, when he took advantage of a Lewis Keane-Potter error, was the perfect way to celebrate being back in the starting line-up after being used off the bench in the previous two games.
At the other end, the central defensive trio of Murillo, Nikola Milenkovic and Morato were excellent, tackling and heading everything that moved.
Wing-backs Neco Williams and Aina combined for the opening goal and when goalkeeper Matz Sels was needed, he made a point-blank face save from Kristoffer Ajer – part of the effort that has made Forest unlikely occupants of a top-four finish.
Anthony Elanga scored on his return to the starting line-up as Nottingham Forest defeated Brentford
Elanga scored in the early stages of the second half, with Forest taking all three points
Ola Aina had put Forest ahead against Brentford when he found the net in the 38th minute
Brentford’s home run had to end at some point and this was their first ever Premier League defeat to Forest.
They dominated the first half hour, with Mikkel Damsgaard denied by Sels and Ajer and Yoane Wissa going close, but when Forest rose from their early slumber they were ruthless.
The first warning sign for Brentford came after 32 minutes when Callum Hudson-Odoi and Williams carried the ball into the final third. Elliot Anderson’s cross was met firmly by the head of in-form Chris Wood and Mark Fleken reacted well to save the header from close range.
Encouraged, the visitors struck six minutes later to take the lead.
The beloved Williams reached the byline and from his low cross Wood distracted Ben Mee at the near post and the ball reached Aina to fire home from 12 yards for his first Forest away goal.
As Brentford had come back from conceding the opening goal to win three times this season, Forest needed a second – and it came after 51 minutes.
Makeshift left-back Keane Lewis-Potter made a poor touch trying to control the ball deep in his own half, and Elanga needed no second invitation to seize the opportunity, cutting inside and driving low left-footed into the bottom corner of Spots to drill. .
Bees fought hard to keep their unbeaten home record alive but they suspected it wasn’t their day when Ajer struck a chance on goal from eight yards and found Sels after bouncing just in front of him.
Aina scored his second Premier League goal of the season to give Forest the upper hand
Forest star Aina celebrates at the final whistle after his team’s impressive win
Brentford’s Paris Maghoma will be challenged by Nottingham Forest’s Nicolas Dominguez
Nuno Espirito Santo watched on as his side climbed to third place in the Premier League
It was a particularly painful end for Brentford substitute Mads Roerslev, who was cut above the eye by an accidental elbow from Forest player Taiwo Awoniyi and had to be substituted himself, which summed up Brentford’s unfortunate afternoon.
“It was a close game that could have gone either way,” their manager Thomas Frank said after a rare home error. ‘Forest is a team that defends incredibly well.’
Elanga, who also scored from the bench last weekend, thanked former striker Jermain Defoe for giving him some tips on how to spot opportunities.
‘I received a nice message from him about getting into the box. “I want to get myself into areas where I can score,” he said. ‘I work on it during training sessions where you build muscle memory.’