Forest's Striker Fires Twice as Nottingham Forest Round Off European Campaign with Win over Hungarian Opponents
Match Summary
- The home side were already through to the play-offs.
- Bence Otvos own goal gives hosts a first-half lead.
- Igor Jesus' European strike puts Forest in control.
- Striker adds a third with a sharp finish in the latter period.
- The midfielder caps a great performance with a penalty.
The Brazilian attacker found the net on two occasions as Nottingham Forest rounded off the league phase of the Europa League with a comfortable win against their Hungarian visitors at the City Ground.
The hosts had previously guaranteed a berth in the next qualifying round and entered this game with a slim possibility of making the top eight, even though they needed several results to go their way.
Those results failed to materialize but this confident display will give the supporters confidence that their side can come through the two-legged play-off to advance to the last 16.
A Ferencvaros midfielder struck the post with a header inside the first 10 minutes for the visitors – coached by former Tottenham striker Robbie Keane – but it was all Forest from that point forward.
They broke the deadlock in the early stages when a delivery from midfield was turned into his own net by Bence Otvos and doubled the lead four minutes later – Jesus firing an effort in at the back post for his 10th goal of the campaign.
The forward's eleventh goal came soon after the restart when he made a perfectly-timed run to escape the backline and then drive an effort beyond the goalkeeper.
That goal killed off Ferencvaros' hopes of making a comeback and instead Forest scored again when the impressive McAtee scored from a spot-kick after a foul by the unfortunate Otvos inside the box on Dan Ndoye.
Europe's secondary club competition knockout phase play-off draw takes place on Friday, 30 January (midday UK time), where Forest could be drawn against either Fenerbahce or the Greek club.
"It's more than the scoreline, there was that atmosphere about it. I want these players to do well as a unit, the entire team," said Forest boss Sean Dyche.
"That was another stride forward, but it is a good one."
Forest Analysis: Jesus Catches Eye as Recent Arrival Observes from Stands
Igor Jesus has been a standout performer for Forest in Europe this season with half of his 11 goals scored in the Europa League.
This double also means he has scored three goals in his previous two outings and the prospect of a challenge for his place in the forward line could be providing motivation.
Napoli striker Lorenzo Lucca was recently brought in temporarily and he was observing this game from the directors' box.
That may well have been on the striker's thoughts as he was impressive against Ferencvaros, producing two superb finishes and overall being a menace to the opposition backline with his speed and movement.
The forward was not alone in catching the eye, with McAtee producing his finest display in a Nottingham Forest shirt since signing from Manchester City last summer, while the Swiss international also impressed.
These encouraging performances will give Forest some fresh hope as they turn their attention to increasing the gap from the bottom three when they welcome Crystal Palace on the weekend.
"All you can ask for is a reaction," continued Dyche.
"I have always trusted their commitment or their dedication or integrity. It is just about displaying your ability.
"McAtee was excellent and Dan Ndoye was super sharp. Igor got another two and these are good signs."
Star Performer
Number: 19 Igor Jesus
Match rating: 9.10
Forest Key Performers
- #19: Average Rating 9.10
- #24: Average Rating 8.75
- #22: Average Rating 8.63
- #6: Rating 8.01
- N. Milenković: Average Rating 7.94
Ferencváros Notable Players
- #11: Average Rating 4.1
- #66: Average Rating 4.1
- K. Zachariassen: Average Rating 4.09
After the opportunity to rate players has closed, the score shown represents the mean from all the submissions.
