Forest's Striker Scores a Brace as The Reds Conclude Europa League Group Stage with Win over Hungarian Opponents
At a Glance
- Forest were previously qualified to the knockout round.
- A Ferencvaros defender deflection gives hosts a first-half lead.
- Igor Jesus' fifth goal in Europe puts Forest in control.
- Forward nets again with a clinical effort in the latter period.
- The midfielder caps a great display with a penalty.
The Brazilian attacker found the net on two occasions as the Premier League side rounded off the group stage of the European competition with a comfortable triumph against their Hungarian visitors at the home stadium.
Forest had previously guaranteed a place in the next qualifying round and entered this fixture with a small chance of making the league's elite, even though they required other matches to go their way.
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 advance to the last 16.
A Ferencvaros midfielder struck the upright with a header inside the first 10 minutes for the visitors – coached by ex-Premier League forward Robbie Keane – but it was all Forest from then on.
Forest opened the scoring in the early stages when a delivery from midfield was turned into his own net by the defender and doubled the lead shortly after – Jesus squeezing a shot in at the far post for his 10th goal of the campaign.
The forward's 11th arrived early in the second half when he made a perfectly-timed run to escape the backline and then place a shot beyond the goalkeeper.
That goal ended the visitors' hopes of mounting a recovery and instead Forest scored again when the impressive James McAtee converted a spot-kick after a foul by the hapless Bence Otvos inside the box on the winger.
Europe's secondary club competition qualifying round draw takes place on the final Friday of January (12:00 GMT), where Nottingham Forest might face either the Turkish side or the Greek club.
"It is not just the result, there was that atmosphere about it. I want these players to do well as a unit, the entire team," said manager Sean Dyche.
"That was another step, but it is a positive step."
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Igor Jesus has been a revelation for Forest in European competition this term with six of his 11 goals scored in the tournament.
This double also means he has got 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 recently brought in temporarily and he was observing this match from the stands.
That may well have been on Jesus' thoughts as he was impressive against the opposition, delivering two excellent goals and overall being a constant threat to the opposition backline with his pace and runs.
The forward was not the only one in impressing, with James McAtee producing his best performance in a Forest jersey since joining from Manchester City last summer, while Dan Ndoye also impressed.
These encouraging performances will give the club some fresh hope as they turn their attention to pulling further away from the Premier League relegation zone when they welcome Crystal Palace on the weekend.
"The minimum requirement is a reaction," added the manager.
"I have always trusted their work ethic or their dedication or honesty. It is just about displaying your ability.
"McAtee was excellent and Dan Ndoye was incredibly lively. Igor got another couple and these are positive indicators."
Star Performer
#19 Igor Jesus
Match rating: 9.10
Nottingham Forest Key Performers
- Igor Jesus: Average Rating 9.1
- #24: Rating 8.75
- #22: Average Rating 8.63
- I. Sangaré: Average Rating 8.01
- #31: Rating 7.94
Ferencváros Notable Players
- B. Yusuf: Average Rating 4.1
- Júlio Romão: Average Rating 4.1
- #16: Rating 4.1
Once the chance to submit ratings has ended, the rating shown is the mean from all the submissions.
