Igor Jesus Fires a Brace as The Reds Round Off European Group Stage with Victory over Ferencvaros
Match Summary
- Forest were already through to the knockout round.
- Bence Otvos own goal gives hosts a opening period lead.
- Igor Jesus' European strike 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.
Igor Jesus scored twice as Nottingham Forest rounded off the group stage of the European competition with a convincing win against their Hungarian visitors at the home stadium.
The hosts had previously guaranteed a berth in the next qualifying round and went into this game with a slim possibility of reaching the top eight, although they required several results to fall in their favor.
That did not happen but this confident performance will give the supporters belief that their team can come through the two-legged play-off to advance to the last 16.
A Ferencvaros midfielder did hit the post with a headed effort inside the first 10 minutes for the away team – coached by ex-Premier League forward Robbie Keane – but it was dominantly the home side from that point forward.
They opened the scoring in the early stages when a delivery from midfield was deflected in by the defender and added a second shortly after – the striker squeezing a shot in at the back post for his tenth strike of the campaign.
Jesus' 11th arrived early in the second half when he timed a run perfectly to escape the backline and then drive an effort past the shot-stopper.
The third strike killed off Ferencvaros' hopes of mounting a recovery and instead Forest added a fourth when the impressive James McAtee scored from a spot-kick after a infringement by the unfortunate Otvos inside the box on Dan Ndoye.
Europe's secondary club competition qualifying round lottery takes place on the final Friday of January (12:00 GMT), where Forest could be drawn against either the Turkish side or Panathinaikos.
"It is not just the result, there was that atmosphere about it. I want these guys to do well as a unit, the whole squad," said manager Sean Dyche.
"This is another stride forward, but it is a good step."
Team Breakdown: Jesus Catches Eye as New Signing Observes from Stands
Jesus has been a standout performer for Forest in European competition this term with half of his eleven strikes scored in the Europa League.
This double also means he has scored a trio of strikes in his last two games and the threat of a challenge for his place in attack could be providing motivation.
Italian forward Lorenzo Lucca was last week brought in temporarily and he was watching this match from the directors' box.
That may well have been on Jesus' mind as he was impressive against the opposition, delivering two excellent finishes and generally being a constant threat to the opposition backline with his pace and runs.
The forward was not alone in impressing, with James McAtee turning in his finest display in a Nottingham Forest shirt since joining from Manchester City in the previous transfer window, while the Swiss international also performed well.
Such positive showings will give Forest some fresh hope as they switch focus to pulling further away from the bottom three when they host Crystal Palace on the weekend.
"The minimum requirement is a reaction," added Dyche.
"I've never questioned their work ethic or their loyalty or integrity. It is just about displaying your quality.
"McAtee was very good and Dan Ndoye was super sharp. Igor got another couple and these are good signs."
Star Performer
#19 The Striker
Average rating: 9.10
Nottingham Forest Top Players
- Igor Jesus: Average Rating 9.1
- J. McAtee: Rating 8.75
- R. Yates: Rating 8.63
- #6: Average Rating 8.0
- N. Milenković: Average Rating 7.9
The Visitors Notable Players
- B. Yusuf: Rating 4.14
- #66: Rating 4.12
- #16: Average Rating 4.1
After the opportunity to rate players has closed, the score displayed is the mean from all the votes.
