Forest's Striker Scores a Brace as Nottingham Forest Conclude European Group Stage with Win over Ferencvaros
At a Glance
- The home side were already through to the play-offs.
- Bence Otvos deflection gives hosts a opening period lead.
- The striker's European strike puts Forest in command.
- Forward adds a third with a clinical effort in the latter period.
- The midfielder rounds off a excellent performance with a penalty.
The Brazilian attacker scored twice as the Premier League side concluded the league phase of the European competition with a convincing triumph against Ferencvaros at the City Ground.
The hosts had already secured a place in the knockout round play-offs and went into this game with a slim possibility of reaching the top eight, even though they needed several results to go their way.
Those results failed to materialize but this confident performance will give Forest fans confidence that their side can come through the two-legged play-off to reach the round of sixteen.
A Ferencvaros midfielder did hit the post with a header inside the first 10 minutes for the away team – who are managed by former Tottenham striker Robbie Keane – but it was dominantly the home side from then on.
Forest broke the deadlock in the 17th minute when a delivery from midfield was deflected in by the defender and added a second four minutes later – the striker squeezing a shot in at the back post for his tenth strike of the campaign.
Jesus' 11th came early in the second half when he timed a run perfectly to escape the backline and then place a shot past the shot-stopper.
That goal ended the visitors' aspirations of mounting a recovery and instead Forest scored again when the excellent McAtee converted a spot-kick after a foul by the unfortunate Bence Otvos inside the box on Dan Ndoye.
The Europa League knockout phase play-off lottery is scheduled on Friday, 30 January (12:00 GMT), where Forest might face either Fenerbahce or Panathinaikos.
"It's more than the scoreline, there was that feel about it. I want these guys to do collectively well, the entire team," said manager Sean Dyche.
"This is another step, but it is a positive one."
Team Breakdown: Jesus Catches Eye as Recent Arrival Observes from Stands
Jesus has been a revelation for Forest in European competition this season with half of his eleven strikes scored in the Europa League.
His brace also means he has got a trio of strikes in his previous two outings and the prospect of a challenge for his place in attack could be spurring him on.
Napoli striker Lorenzo Lucca was recently brought in temporarily and he was watching this match from the directors' box.
This development may well have been on the striker's thoughts as he was outstanding against Ferencvaros, delivering two superb finishes and overall being a menace to the opposition backline with his speed and movement.
Jesus was not the only one in impressing, with James McAtee turning in his best performance in a Forest jersey since joining from Manchester City in the previous transfer window, while Dan Ndoye 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 Sunday.
"All you can ask for is a reaction," continued the manager.
"I've never questioned their commitment or their loyalty or honesty. It is just go and show your quality.
"James was excellent and Dan Ndoye was super sharp. Jesus got another couple and these are good signs."
Player of the Match
#19 The Striker
Match rating: 9.1
Nottingham Forest Top Players
- #19: Rating 9.10
- #24: Rating 8.75
- #22: Average Rating 8.63
- I. Sangaré: Rating 8.0
- N. Milenković: Rating 7.9
Ferencváros Notable Players
- B. Yusuf: Average Rating 4.14
- #66: Average Rating 4.12
- #16: Rating 4.09
After the opportunity to rate players has ended, the rating shown is the average from all the submissions.