Forest's Striker Scores Twice as The Reds Round Off European Campaign with Win over Hungarian Opponents
Match Summary
- The home side were previously qualified to the knockout round.
- Bence Otvos own goal gives hosts a first-half lead.
- Igor Jesus' European strike puts the team in command.
- Striker nets again with a clinical effort in the latter period.
- James McAtee caps a great display with a penalty.
Igor Jesus found the net on two occasions as Nottingham Forest rounded off the league phase of the European competition with a comfortable triumph against their Hungarian visitors at the City Ground.
The hosts had already secured a place in the knockout round play-offs and went into this game with a small chance of making the top eight, although they needed 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 two-legged play-off to advance to the round of sixteen.
Kristoffer Zachariassen did hit the post with a headed effort inside the opening stages for the away team – who are managed by former Tottenham striker Robbie Keane – but it was dominantly the home side from that point forward.
They opened the scoring in the early stages when Ryan Yates' cross was deflected in by the defender and doubled the lead shortly after – the striker squeezing a shot in at the far post for his tenth strike of the campaign.
The forward's eleventh goal arrived early in the second half when he timed a run perfectly to escape the defence and then place a shot beyond the shot-stopper.
The third strike ended the visitors' hopes of making a comeback and instead the hosts scored again when the impressive James McAtee scored from a spot-kick after a infringement by the unfortunate Bence Otvos inside the penalty area on the winger.
Europe's secondary club competition knockout phase play-off draw is scheduled on Friday, 30 January (midday UK time), where Nottingham Forest might face either the Turkish side or the Greek club.
"It's more than the scoreline, there was that atmosphere about it. I want these guys to do collectively well, the whole squad," said Forest boss Sean Dyche.
"This is another step, but it is a positive step."
Team Breakdown: Jesus Catches Eye as Recent Arrival Observes from Stands
Jesus has been a standout performer for Nottingham Forest in Europe this term with six of his eleven strikes scored 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 place in attack could be providing motivation.
Italian forward Lorenzo Lucca was recently signed on loan and he was watching this match from the directors' box.
That may well have been on the striker's thoughts as he was outstanding against Ferencvaros, producing two excellent finishes and overall being a constant threat to the opposition backline with his speed and movement.
The forward was not alone in catching the eye, with James McAtee turning in his best performance in a Nottingham Forest shirt since signing from the champions last summer, while Dan Ndoye also performed well.
These encouraging performances will give Forest some fresh hope as they turn their attention to pulling further away from the bottom three when they welcome Crystal Palace on Sunday.
"The minimum requirement is a response," continued Dyche.
"I have always trusted their commitment or their dedication or integrity. It is just go and show your quality.
"James was excellent and Dan was super sharp. Jesus got another couple and these are good signs."
Star Performer
Number: 19 The Striker
Match rating: 9.1
Forest Top Players
- #19: Rating 9.1
- #24: Average Rating 8.75
- R. Yates: Average Rating 8.63
- #6: Average Rating 8.01
- #31: Rating 7.94
The Visitors Notable Players
- B. Yusuf: Rating 4.1
- Júlio Romão: Average Rating 4.12
- #16: Average Rating 4.09
Once the chance to submit ratings has ended, the rating shown represents the mean from all the votes.
