Nottingham Forest returned to form in style with a crushing 3-0 win against Tottenham Hotspur at the City Ground on Sunday afternoon.
Callum Hudson-Odoi opened the scoring after a woeful pass from goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario put Archie Gray into trouble, allowing the excellent Ibrahima Sangare to pinch the ball before squaring to his teammate to tap home.
The winger added Forest’s second goal on 50 minutes, after his attempted cross looped over the Spurs keeper, and into the far corner of the net. Sangare had the last word, rounding off a fine victory with a rocket strike from the edge of the box.
As a result, Spurs missed the chance to climb into the top half of the Premier League table, while Forest moved five points clear of the relegation zone.
After the game, Spurs manager Thomas Frank told NBC: “It’s hugely disappointing. That was a bad performance, especially first-half. Overall, especially after the first goal, we looked disjointed.
“Also, after the second goal, it looked disjointed after that; didn’t win enough duels, and we couldn’t hit each other – it seems like we gave the ball away every single time we won it back throughout the game. That doesn’t help to win a football match.”
Nottingham Forest manager Sean Dyche told BBC's Match of the Day: "Very pleased, the work the players have been putting in has been fantastic. I thought the football today was a really good mix. We know they have talent but the glue that held us together was the work ethic.
"It's choosing when to press. It's the football intelligence to see a bad ball and when someone is under pressure. Seeing it and activating it is something these lads are improving at."
Nottingham Forest ratings
John Victor – 7/10: A surprisingly quiet day for the Brazilian stopper, who was seldom tested. However, when forced into action, he didn’t put a step wrong.
Nicolo Savona – 7/10: Enjoyed an excellent first-half, and very nearly grabbed an assist with his floated cross to Igor Jesus, who struck the post.
Nikola Milenkovic – 7/10: Solid at the back for Forest, stepping in well with vital interceptions and clearances.
Murillo – 8/10: Just as impressive defensively as his centre-back partner, but the 23-year-old's composure on the ball was crucial for Forest, as he started several counter-attacks despite being under pressure.
Neco Williams – 8/10: A live wire all afternoon, especially when marauding forward. His crossing was exquisite, causing chaos in the Spurs back line.
Elliot Anderson – 6/10: The England international was rather fortunate to avoid a booking for an elbow on Pedro Porro. His passing was also unusually wayward on occasions, although he remained defensively disciplined throughout.
Ibrahim Sangare – 9/10: Pressed Gray into a mistake for Forest’s opener, before rifling home the side’s third from range. The Ivorian was everywhere, and will now jet off to the Africa Cup of Nations in top form. Forest will be counting down the days to his return.
Omari Hutchinson – 7/10: Created a handful of decent chances for himself, although his end product was underwhelming. Nevertheless, he remained a thorn in Spurs' side throughout.
Morgan Gibbs-White – 7/10: Proved to be a fine linkman between the Forest midfield and attack, especially during quick counters. Showed tenacity and application throughout.
Callum Hudson-Odoi – 9/10: Alongside Sangare, Forest’s standout player. His two goals could hardly have been more different, as the opener was an unmissable tap-in, while his second was seemingly a misdirected cross that flew beyond Guglielmo Vicario’s reach. He might claim otherwise, however.
Igor Jesus – 8/10: Unlucky to be on the scoresheet, having hit the post early on. His movement off the ball constantly kept the Spurs defenders guessing.
Substitutes
Dan Ndoye (Hudson-Odoi 92') – N/A Replaced Hudson-Odoi in added time.
Douglas Luiz (Jesus 85') – N/A Helped Forest see out the game.
Tottenham ratings
Guglielmo Vicario – 4/10: The Italian keeper had a nightmare game. His senseless pass to Gray led to Forest’s opener, while his positioning for Hudson-Odoi’s cross-come-shot was also way off.
Pedro Porro – 6/10: Had a solid first-half, competing well with the Forest wingers. Didn’t offer enough going forward.
Cristian Romero – 5/10: Error-prone, especially with the ball at his feet. Looked unsettled from the outset, especially when Forest pressed high up the pitch.
Micky van de Ven – 6/10: Didn’t do too much wrong, but had to deal with a combination of bad fortune and errors from his teammates.
Djed Spence – 6/10: Didn’t do enough from left-back to stem the flow of Forest crosses in the first-half – a couple of which nearly led to goals. Looked a bit better going forward with the ball.
Rodrigo Bentancur – 6/10: Retained possession well in the middle of the park, but failed to make his mark in the final third.
Archie Gray – 4/10: You have to feel for the youngster after being dropped in the proverbial by his goalkeeper for Forest’s first goal. His afternoon didn’t improve much after that. Booked for a poor tackle on Sangare.
Mohammed Kudus – 7/10: Looked to be Spurs’ best hope of scoring in the first half, chiefly thanks to his mazy dribbles. However, his influence waned slightly as the game progressed.
Xavi Simons – 5/10: Nowhere near as influential as he has been in recent games. The Dutchman was a peripheral figure, partly because of how well Forest did in shutting his game down.
Randal Kolo Muani – 6 /10: Grew in confidence in the second half. His direct running and link-up play posed some questions to the generally flawless Forest defenders.
Richarlison – 5/10: Largely anonymous – and isolated – up front for Spurs. Neither of his two shots at goal had John Victor particularly worried.
Substitutes
Lucas Bergvall (Bentancur 59') – 5/10: Came on for the final half-hour, but never seemed to settle and his passing radar was way off.
Joao Palhinha (Gray 59') – 6/10: Replaced Gray on the hour mark, and generally kept the ball moving nicely.
Ben Davies (Spence 59') – 6/10: Added security to the Spurs back line.
Brennan Johnson (Kudus 80') – N/A: Didn’t really have a sniff at goal against his former club.
Mathys Tel (Kolo Muani 80') – N/A: Had one or two bright moments after his late introduction.
