Nottingham Forest 0-1 Fulham: Raul Jimenez scores for the third league game running as Nuno Espirito Santo’s side lose for the first time this season
Fulham needed a controversial penalty to claim three points at the City Ground as Mexican striker Raul Jimenez scored for the third successive game, securing a 1-0 win and inflicting a first defeat of the season on Nottingham Forest.
On the face of it this was what the neutrals might call a cause of death, but tell that to those in attendance as both Nottingham Forest and Fulham arrived at the City Ground above Man United and Spurs in the Premier League standings and both were proud of the ambition to improve their position. early pressure on those above them in the hunt for European football.
Fast forward from their last meeting in May – in which Forest secured a win that ultimately helped keep them in the division – and they came home unbeaten, having secured a historic victory at Anfield and a chance to sneak into the top four .
If the home fans needed a spark to get them off their seats, Taiwo Awoniyi’s early show of strength to sweep Fulham defender Antonee Robinson off the ball in the opening exchanges, provided City Ground celebrated winning a corner as if they had just had scored.
The Forest forward doesn’t fit the typical modern build of an Erling Haaland or Gabriel Jesus, but his frame suits the old-fashioned suit of a Wayne Rooney figure and his acrobatic effort in the 19th minute almost recreated the former Man’s legendary finish United attacker, only to fall just wide.
Fulham became the first team to beat Nottingham Forest this season, thanks to a 1-0 victory
The only goal of the match at the City Ground was a penalty converted by Raul Jimenez
Mexican Jimenez has now scored in three consecutive Premier League games for Fulham
There was an early fluidity to Forest’s play that Fulham struggled with as the hosts showed attacking variety on the counter-attack, pinging through the middle and sometimes going long to Awoniyi, who has the physicality to match that of the Prime Minister. League centre-forward.
His attacking partner, Chris Wood, then thought he had given Forest the lead by tapping a header back across goal, but in the 25th minute he was correctly shown to be offside.
Fulham finally launched their first attack not long after, with Alex Iwobi converting a pass through the Forest penalty area that Premier League veteran Raul Jimenez was quickest to react to, only for his tame attempt to curl into the hands of Matz Sels as Marco Silva’s team struggled to get going. Usual creators Emile Smith-Rowe and Andreas Pereira largely destroyed the game.
Both competitors fought to take the lead approaching half-time, with the home side looking more convincing in attack and only denied an opening goal through sloppy last man defending, while Fulham threw bodies on the line and Forest just missed out on composure which was necessary in such a busy environment. situations.
Faint cries for two quick penalties came from Forest fans just before the halfway mark when Awoniyi and Wood hit the deck in the same attack. Both were quickly told to stand up, and rightly so, as the match remained goalless at halftime.
Fulham’s penalty was awarded after a VAR review and after the referee saw a replay
Ranger Matz Sels dived in the right direction, but could not stop Jimenez’s shot
Happy Fulham supporters singing during Saturday’s away win at Nottingham
Nuno Espirito Santos made changes for the visit of Fulham, retaining Morgan Gibbs-White after being sent off against Brighton last time out, but also opting to relegate attacking stars Anthony Elanga and Callum Hudson-Odoi to the bench because both were given rest afterwards. a tough minute run. Elanga was given just 45 minutes of rest as he made his debut in favor of Awoniyi.
Then came Fulham’s claim that this time did stick when Pereira went down in the penalty area, VAR took a look and a quick assessment on the pitch determined a penalty should be awarded. Murillo and the entire City Ground protested his innocence, but clear pressure, regardless of the power behind it, gives officials an easy decision and ultimately this was a costly mistake for Forest to admit.
A lukewarm discussion ensued among Fulham’s strikers over who would take the penalty before JImenez took control and the Mexican made no mistake from the spot as his shot crept in behind the post.
Finally, this match got a real spark when Espirito Santo made a double substitution, with both Hudson-Odoi and Jota Silva making their introductions and immediately causing problems in the Fulham defense. Three quick attacks should have resulted in the equalizer, with Hudson-Odoi brilliantly skipping past three defenders in the penalty area before firing his shot over the bar in the 63rd minute. A poor finish.
The same strike left Forest clamoring for their own penalty, with Elanga going down after being clipped by Calvin Bassey as the centre-back attempted to clear the ball. There was contact but the former Man United star had jumped into the motion of Bassey’s swinging foot and VAR correctly allowed play to continue.
If there is one complaint about Forest’s thriving and young squad, it is their game management. As tempers flared among Forest fans, they too flared on the pitch and desperation turned to sloppiness, in contrast to a composed Fulham who did the simple things well and showed all their experience running down the clock.
Two VAR checks, numerous offside situations and regular fouls in the second half resulted in eight minutes of extra time. A solo run from Elanga to get forward at the end of a lobbed pass and a hopeful Bassey shot from distance provided rare glimpses of turning the score around.
Forest recorded their highest home attendance in over a decade with 30,139 supporters for the visit of Fulham, but this was a match that ultimately proved to be the crack in their unbeaten shell.