Nottingham Forest clinched their place in the quarter-finals of the Carabao Cup as they thumped Blackburn Rovers 4-1 at Ewood Park.
The visitors should have been out of sight by the break. Instead, it was all-square as they were left to rue not making the most of a glut of chances.
Brennan Johnson and Taiwo Awoniyi forced saves early on, before the former opened the scoring with 12 minutes on the clock. Brought down by Scott Wharton in the area, the Wales international stepped up and was ice-cool from the penalty spot, sending Aynsley Pears the wrong way.
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That should have opened the floodgates as the Reds continued to work good opportunities. Awoniyi had an effort blocked and Orel Mangala drove one straight at the keeper before the half hour. The front man then flicked a Neco Williams cross wide, while Johnson fired off target after a brilliant run, with Jesse Lingard having been screaming out for the pass in the centre.
It had generally been a quiet evening for Dean Henderson at the opposite end of the pitch. But on the stroke of half-time, Scott Wharton headed in a free-kick from brother Adam to level.
Forest restored their advantage 10 minutes into the second half. After being fouled just outside of the area, Lingard’s strike took a wicked deflection to wrong-foot Pears after Williams had laid the free-kick into his path.
Awoniyi then wrapped up the result as the match approached the final 10 minutes, before Johnson bagged his second of the night right at the death. Here’s how Reds reporter Sarah Clapson rated the Forest players at Ewood Park.
Dean Henderson: A fairly quiet evening for the goalkeeper as the hosts didn’t have too many chances. Wasn’t helped by defending at the set-piece which resulted in the equaliser. Rating: 7/10
Neco Williams: That Williams-Johnson combination down the right caused Rovers problems right from the off. A good understanding between the duo, with some probing runs as a result. Rating: 7.5/10
Joe Worrall: A bit of a mixed bag. A few wobbly moments, but also made some important interventions and went close to scoring from a corner. Rating: 6/10
Willy Boly: Deservedly kept his place in the side, and generally did well. Forest had a few spells where they came under pressure, but they didn’t give a great deal away. Rating: 6.5/10
Harry Toffolo: A steady, solid performance from the left-back. Much of the Reds’ threat came down the opposite flank, but he stuck to his task well. Rating: 7/10
Remo Freuler: Showed some neat touches with the ball. Will have returned with confidence after having found the back of the net at the World Cup. Rating: 7.5/10
Ryan Yates: Worked hard in the centre of the pitch. Tried his luck on a few occasions and forced a really good save in the second half. Rating: 7.5/10
Orel Mangala: Had a decent chance to finish off a lovely move in the first half, but did at least test the goalkeeper. Quietly, and efficiently, went about his work. Rating: 7/10
Jesse Lingard: Goals in successive Carabao Cup games for the attacker, who will be eager to take that form into the league now. Involved in some brilliant link-up play, too, setting him up nicely for the trip to Old Trafford. Rating: 8.5/10
Brennan Johnson: A thorn in the hosts’ side all night as he ran them ragged. Ice-cool from the spot to open the scoring, and deserved his brace. Will do him the power of good. Rating: 8.5/10
Taiwo Awoniyi: Thoroughly deserved his goal. Had got into some really good positions before that, without making the most of them. Could easily have had a hat-trick - at least. Rating: 7.5/10
Subs
Lewis O’Brien (for Mangala, 63mins): Added fresh legs on the pitch, bringing a bit of energy to proceedings. Rating: 7/10
Emmanuel Dennis (for Awoniyi, 82mins): Didn’t have too long to make an impact on the pitch. Rating: 6/10
Sam Surridge (for Lingard, 82mins): Might well have wished he had got on earlier, given the chances Forest were creating. Rating: 6/10
Jack Colback (for Freuler, 83mins): A good chance for the midfielder to get a run-out. Rating: 6/10
Loic Mbe Soh (for Williams, 88mins): Stepped in at right-back for the final few minutes. Rating: 6/10
Subs not used: Smith, McKenna, Cook, Lodi.
Who was your Forest man of the match? Have your say in the comments below
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