Forest's Striker Fires a Brace as The Reds Round Off European Group Stage with Win over Hungarian Opponents
At a Glance
- Forest were previously qualified to the knockout round.
- A Ferencvaros defender own goal gives Nottingham Forest a first-half lead.
- The striker's European strike puts the team in command.
- Forward nets again with a clinical effort in the latter period.
- The midfielder caps a great performance with a penalty.
Igor Jesus scored twice as Nottingham Forest rounded off the group stage of the Europa League with a comfortable win against Ferencvaros at the City Ground.
The hosts had previously guaranteed a berth in the knockout round play-offs and entered this game with a small chance of making the league's elite, even though they required several results to go their way.
Those results failed to materialize but this confident display will give Forest fans belief that their team can come through the home-and-away tie to advance to the last 16.
A Ferencvaros midfielder struck the post with a header inside the first 10 minutes for the away team – coached by ex-Premier League forward Robbie Keane – but it was all Forest from then on.
Forest broke the deadlock in the early stages when a delivery from midfield was deflected in by Bence Otvos and doubled the lead shortly after – Jesus firing an effort in at the back post for his tenth strike of the season.
Jesus' 11th arrived early in the second half when he timed a run perfectly to break clear of the backline and then drive an effort beyond the goalkeeper.
The third strike killed off the visitors' aspirations of mounting a recovery and instead the hosts scored again when the excellent James McAtee converted a penalty after a foul by the hapless Bence Otvos inside the box on the winger.
The Europa League qualifying round draw takes place on the final Friday of January (12:00 GMT), where Forest could be drawn against either Fenerbahce or Panathinaikos.
"It is not just the scoreline, there was that feel about it. I want these guys to do collectively well, the whole squad," said manager Sean Dyche.
"That was another step, but it is a positive one."
Forest Analysis: Striker Shines as New Signing Observes from Stands
Igor Jesus has been a revelation for Forest in Europe this season with half of his eleven strikes scored in the tournament.
His brace also means he has got three goals in his previous two outings and the prospect of a challenge for his position in the forward line could be spurring him on.
Italian forward Lorenzo Lucca was recently signed on loan and he was observing this game from the directors' box.
This development may well have been on Jesus' thoughts as he was impressive against Ferencvaros, producing two excellent goals and overall being a menace to the opposition backline with his speed and movement.
The forward was not alone in impressing, with James McAtee turning in his finest display in a Nottingham Forest shirt since signing from the champions in the previous transfer window, while Dan Ndoye also performed well.
These encouraging performances will give the club some renewed optimism as they switch focus to pulling further away from the bottom three when they host their London rivals on Sunday.
"All you can ask for is a reaction," continued Dyche.
"I have always trusted their work ethic or their loyalty or honesty. It is just about displaying your ability.
"McAtee was excellent and Dan was incredibly lively. Igor got another couple and these are positive indicators."
Player of the Match
#19 The Striker
Match rating: 9.10
Forest Key Performers
- #19: Average Rating 9.1
- #24: Rating 8.8
- #22: Average Rating 8.63
- #6: Rating 8.0
- N. Milenković: Rating 7.94
Ferencváros Ratings
- #11: Rating 4.1
- Júlio Romão: Average Rating 4.1
- #16: Average Rating 4.09
After the opportunity to rate players has ended, the rating shown is the average from all the submissions.
