Forest's Striker Fires a Brace as Nottingham Forest Conclude 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 opening period lead.
- Igor Jesus' fifth goal in Europe puts the team in control.
- Forward nets again with a sharp finish in the second half.
- James McAtee rounds off a excellent display with a spot-kick.
The Brazilian attacker found the net on two occasions as the Premier League side rounded off the league phase of the Europa League with a convincing triumph against their Hungarian visitors at the home stadium.
The hosts had previously guaranteed a berth in the next qualifying round and entered this fixture with a slim possibility of reaching the top eight, although they needed several results to fall in their favor.
Those results failed to materialize but this confident performance will give Forest fans confidence that their team can navigate the home-and-away tie to reach the last 16.
Kristoffer Zachariassen struck the post with a header inside the opening stages for the away team – who are managed by former Tottenham striker Robbie Keane – but it was all Forest from that point forward.
They opened the scoring in the early stages when a delivery from midfield was turned into his own net by the defender and added a second four minutes later – the striker squeezing a shot in at the far post for his 10th goal of the campaign.
Jesus' 11th arrived early in the second half when he made a perfectly-timed run to escape the defence and then drive an effort beyond the shot-stopper.
That goal killed off Ferencvaros' aspirations of making a comeback and instead Forest added a fourth when the impressive McAtee scored from a penalty after a infringement by the unfortunate Otvos inside the penalty area on Dan Ndoye.
Europe's secondary club competition qualifying round draw is scheduled on the final Friday of January (12:00 GMT), where Forest could be drawn against 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 good one."
Forest Analysis: Jesus Catches Eye as Recent Arrival Watches On
Igor Jesus has been a standout performer for Nottingham Forest in Europe this term with half of his eleven strikes coming in the Europa League.
His brace also means he has scored three goals in his last two games and the prospect of competition 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 stands.
This development may well have been on Jesus' thoughts as he was impressive against the opposition, delivering two superb goals and generally being a constant threat to the visitors' defence with his speed and runs.
Jesus was not alone in impressing, with James McAtee producing his finest display in a Forest jersey since joining from the champions in the previous transfer window, while the Swiss international also performed well.
These encouraging performances will give Forest some fresh hope 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," added the manager.
"I have always trusted their commitment or their dedication or honesty. It is just go and show your ability.
"McAtee was excellent and Dan Ndoye was super sharp. Igor got another couple and these are positive indicators."
Star Performer
#19 Igor Jesus
Average rating: 9.10
Forest Key Performers
- #19: Rating 9.1
- #24: Rating 8.8
- #22: Average Rating 8.63
- #6: Average Rating 8.01
- #31: Average Rating 7.94
Ferencváros Ratings
- #11: Average Rating 4.1
- Júlio Romão: Average Rating 4.12
- K. Zachariassen: Rating 4.09
After the opportunity to rate players has ended, the rating displayed represents the mean from all the submissions.
