Forest's Striker Scores a Brace as Nottingham Forest Round Off Europa League Campaign with Win over Hungarian Opponents
At a Glance
- The home side were already through to the knockout round.
- A Ferencvaros defender own goal gives hosts a first-half lead.
- Igor Jesus' fifth goal in Europe puts Forest in command.
- Forward nets again with a clinical effort in the latter period.
- James McAtee caps a great display with a penalty.
The Brazilian attacker found the net on two occasions as Nottingham Forest rounded off the league phase of the European competition with a comfortable win against their Hungarian visitors at the home stadium.
The hosts had previously guaranteed a berth in the knockout round play-offs and went into this fixture with a small chance of making the top eight, although they needed several results to fall in their favor.
Those results failed to materialize but this confident performance will give the supporters confidence that their team can come through the home-and-away tie to advance to the round of sixteen.
A Ferencvaros midfielder did hit the post with a headed effort inside the opening stages for the away team – coached by ex-Premier League forward Robbie Keane – but it was all Forest from that point forward.
They broke the deadlock in the early stages when a delivery from midfield was turned into his own net by the defender and added a second 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 timed a run perfectly to escape the defence and then drive an effort beyond the shot-stopper.
That goal ended Ferencvaros' hopes of making a comeback and instead Forest scored again when the excellent James McAtee converted a penalty after a infringement by the unfortunate Otvos inside the box on the winger.
The Europa League knockout phase play-off lottery takes place on the final Friday of January (midday UK time), where Forest could be drawn against either the Turkish side or the Greek club.
"It is not just the scoreline, there was that feel about it. I want these players to do collectively well, the entire team," said Forest boss Sean Dyche.
"That was another stride forward, but it is a good step."
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Jesus has been a standout performer for Nottingham Forest in Europe this term with six of his 11 goals scored in the Europa League.
This double also means he has got three goals in his last two games and the prospect of a challenge for his place in the forward line could be spurring him on.
Italian forward Lorenzo Lucca was last week brought in temporarily and he was watching this game from the directors' box.
This development may well have been on the striker's thoughts as he was impressive against the opposition, delivering two excellent finishes and overall being a menace to the opposition backline with his pace and runs.
Jesus was not the only one in impressing, with James McAtee producing his best performance in a Forest jersey since signing from the champions last summer, while Dan Ndoye also impressed.
Such positive showings 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 Sunday.
"All you can ask for is a reaction," added Dyche.
"I've never questioned their commitment or their loyalty or integrity. It is just go and show your quality.
"McAtee was very good and Dan was incredibly lively. Igor got another couple and these are positive indicators."
Star Performer
#19 The Striker
Match rating: 9.1
Forest Top Players
- Igor Jesus: Rating 9.1
- #24: Average Rating 8.75
- R. Yates: Rating 8.6
- #6: Rating 8.0
- N. Milenković: Rating 7.9
The Visitors Ratings
- B. Yusuf: Average Rating 4.14
- #66: Average Rating 4.1
- K. Zachariassen: Rating 4.09
After the opportunity to rate players has closed, the score shown represents the average from all the submissions.
