Igor Jesus Fires Twice as Nottingham Forest Conclude European Campaign with Victory over Ferencvaros
Match Summary
- The home side were already through to the knockout round.
- A Ferencvaros defender own goal gives Nottingham Forest a opening period lead.
- The striker's European strike puts the team in control.
- Forward nets again with a clinical effort in the second half.
- James McAtee caps a great performance with a spot-kick.
The Brazilian attacker scored twice as the Premier League side rounded off the group stage of the European competition with a comfortable triumph against Ferencvaros at the City Ground.
Forest had previously guaranteed a berth in the next qualifying round and entered this fixture with a small chance of making the league's elite, even though they needed several results to go their way.
That did not happen but this confident performance will give Forest fans belief that their team can come through the two-legged play-off to advance to the last 16.
A Ferencvaros midfielder struck the upright 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 that point forward.
Forest opened the scoring in the 17th minute when a delivery from midfield was turned into his own net by the defender and added a second shortly after – the striker squeezing a shot in at the far post for his tenth strike of the campaign.
Jesus' eleventh goal came soon after the restart when he timed a run perfectly to escape the defence and then drive an effort beyond the shot-stopper.
The third strike killed off the visitors' aspirations of making a comeback and instead the hosts added a fourth when the impressive James McAtee converted a penalty after a infringement by the hapless Otvos inside the penalty area on Dan Ndoye.
Europe's secondary club competition knockout phase play-off lottery takes place on Friday, 30 January (12:00 GMT), where Nottingham Forest could be drawn against either Fenerbahce or Panathinaikos.
"It's more than the scoreline, there was that atmosphere about it. I want these guys to do well as a unit, the entire team," said Forest boss Sean Dyche.
"This is another step, but it is a good step."
Forest Analysis: Striker Shines as New Signing Observes from Stands
Jesus has been a standout performer for Nottingham Forest in Europe this season with six of his 11 goals coming in the Europa League.
This double also means he has scored three goals in his previous two outings and the threat 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.
That may well have been on the striker's thoughts as he was impressive against the opposition, delivering two excellent finishes and overall being a constant threat to the visitors' defence with his pace and runs.
The forward was not the only one in impressing, with McAtee turning in his best performance in a Nottingham Forest shirt since signing from Manchester City last summer, while the Swiss international also performed well.
Such positive showings will give the club some renewed optimism as they turn their attention to pulling further away from the bottom three when they host their London rivals on Sunday.
"The minimum requirement is a reaction," continued the manager.
"I've never questioned their commitment or their loyalty or honesty. It is just about displaying your quality.
"James was very good and Dan Ndoye was super sharp. Igor got another couple and these are good signs."
Star Performer
Number: 19 The Striker
Match rating: 9.1
Nottingham Forest Key Performers
- #19: Rating 9.1
- #24: Average Rating 8.8
- R. Yates: Average Rating 8.6
- #6: Rating 8.01
- #31: Rating 7.94
The Visitors Notable Players
- B. Yusuf: Rating 4.1
- Júlio Romão: Rating 4.1
- K. Zachariassen: Average Rating 4.1
After the opportunity to rate players has closed, the score shown is the mean from all the submissions.
