Yoane Wissa was perhaps a Nottingham Forest player in the meantime had decided to cash their impressive attacker.
2024/2025 Premier League
0-2
- Kevin Damage (44 ')
- Yoane Wissa (70 ')
Match report
Three months later, Wissa may have given a significant blow to the hope of Forest to qualify for next season's Champions League by scoring the decisive second goal against the men of Nuno Espirito Santo.
Forest slid from the top five and although this defeat is far from terminal, their shape is a serious worries. The goals of Kevin Damage and Wissa condemned Forest to their third defeat in four league matches and too many of their most important men losing shape, especially in a defense that has proved to be so solid. The mistakes for the goals of Brentford would have embarrassed a team under 11.
This was the sixth way of Brentford of what has been an impressive season for the West London Club. With the Brentford season effective, Forest may have hoped that they would miss the focus for this competition. If so, they were very mistaken.
Although Forest had an excellent year, they would be so depressed if they now missed the Champions League, who have spent so long in the top five. They have to regroup quickly: in-shape Crystal Palace wait on Monday in Selhurst Park.
There was little time for disappointment after the defeat of Forest by Manchester City in the FA Cup Semi-Final in Wembley last Sunday. This is a sprint of five games before the finish line that Forest Hope will deliver that will deliver Champions League football.
Within the city they were encouraged to see the strongest XI of Nuno. Ola Aina had recovered from the injury that had held him outside the previous four games and Anthony Elanga was also restored to the starting XI.
Now Brentford is the type of team that is in problems. Just like their hosts, they play a cautious match and trust incoming speed. And the alarm sounded before Forest in the second minute when Kevin Damage went back to the cross of Mikkel Damsgaard, forced Murillo to make an uncomfortable clearance.
Forest showed their cleverness when Morgan Gibbs-White and Callum Hudson-Odoi made a mess of a free Rick Routine and briefly squabbled. Moments later, Matz Sels saved excellent to stop Van den Berg with the free kick from Damsgaard home.
Already on a yellow card, Keane Lewis-Potter Aina put a dangerous spot and escaped a second booking. Nuno could not believe his eyes and nor could his NO2 Rui Silva, who destroyed the fourth official Leigh Doughty.
We only saw a glimpse of the power of Gibbs-White for the break. A low cross forced Van den Berg in a risky clearance. Then he made an excellent tackle on Bryan Mbeumo and let Elliot Anderson, whose finish was weak.
Forest fell behind just before half -time and it was a defensive shocker. Aina was slow to follow damage from the left and neither Sels nor Murillo treated Nathan Collins's ball across the top. Damage could not believe his happiness, Aina shot out and stuck past Sels.
The sight of Callum Hudson-Odoi who bumped to the tunnel, summarized the mood of the forest and Nuno knew that much better was needed in the second half to keep the cars rolling.
The Bosbaas sent Nicolas Dominguez for the wounded Hudson-Odoi, where Elanga switched to the left. It is not surprising that Rico Henry was caused for the wrestling Lewis-Potter.
Double European Cup winner Ian Bowyer was interviewed on the field during the break, perhaps in an attempt to evoke the spirit of the greatest nights of the club.
But when Rain ran at the beginning of the second half, Forest could not shake their fear. Simple steps started to wander and routine movements broke off. And when the home team found an opening in the defensive wall of Brentford, Mark Flekken made a great save from Elanga's sloping effort. Then the goalkeeper of the bees was able to look calmly while the strike of Ryan Yates floated from a distance wide.
This crowd has been ultra-supporting the entire season, but when Gibbs-White's attempted pass to Wood drove directly to Flekken, they even started to lose patience. Nuno responded with an extra center-forward when Taiwo Awoniyi Anderson replaced.
'Get it in the box' was the plan, and it worked almost immediately. Eight meters out, Chris Wood Aina's cross widely went wide.
After he had let in such a bad goal in the first half, it seemed that unimaginable forest would do this again. However, they did that in one way or another. When Flekken Downfield launched, Nikola Milenkovic bounced the ball and when he turned around, Wissa loaded on goal. His wonderful finish did the rest.
Match -Events
45 'goal! Nottingham Forest 0-1 Brentford
70 'goal! Nottingham Forest 0-2 Brentford (Yoane Wissa)
Line-ups
Nottingham Forest XI: Wood, Sels, Aina, Elliot Anderson, Milenkovic, Gibbs-White, Hudson-Odoi, Ryan Yates, Neco Williams, Anthony Elanga, Murillo, Murillo
Subs: Harry Toffolo, Taiwo Awoniyi, Sangare, Dominguez, Jota Silva, Carlos Miguel, Morato, Ramón Sosa, Zach Abbott
Brentford XI: Christian Nørgaard, Mark Flekken, Yoane Wissa, Mikkel Damsgaard, Van den Berg, Bryan Mbeumo, Keane Lewis-Potter, Nathan Collins, Kevin Schade, Yegor Yarmolyuk, Michael Kayode
Subs: Mee, Kristoffer Ajer, Rico Henry, Mathias Jensen, Ethan Pinnock, Hákon Rafn Valdimarsson, Paris Maghoma, Yunus Emre Konak, Gustavo Nunes