Nottingham Forest’s first Premier League game back after the World Cup break ended in defeat as they were beaten 3-0 by Manchester United.
The Reds had made a positive start at Old Trafford, seeing a fair bit of the ball in the first quarter of an hour. But two goals in the space of three first-half minutes left them facing the prospect of a long night.
With Dean Henderson ineligible to feature against his parent club, Wayne Hennessey made his first league appearance for Forest. He thwarted Tyrell Malacia in the opening few minutes, but was then beaten twice in quick succession.
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Christian Eriksen picked out a clever run from Marcus Rashford at a corner, and some slack defending allowed the United man to sweep the ball home. Rashford then turned provider, setting up Anthony Martial. Hennessey got a hand to that one but could not keep it out.
The visitors thought they had pulled one back just before the break, only for the goal to be disallowed following a lengthy VAR delay. Ryan Yates had met Renan Lodi’s free-kick, but Willy Boly got the final touch and was ruled to have been offside.
Hennessey kept the scoreline at 2-0 after the break, denying Antony and Rashford. Brennan Johnson and Sam Surridge drew David De Gea into action at the other end of the pitch, but there was no way through for Steve Cooper’s side, with Fred wrapping up the scoring late on. Here’s how Reds reporter Sarah Clapson rated the Forest players at Old Trafford.
Wayne Hennessey: Really should have done better with United’s second, having got a hand to it. Made up for it with some big saves in the second half to keep his team in with some hope until late on. Rating: 5.5/10
Serge Aurier: Had a fair bit of joy down the right flank and made some good runs, including setting up Mangala in the second half. A positive that he was able to feature after being an injury doubt. Rating: 6/10
Joe Worrall: Looked confident early on and had started well enough, making some important clearances. Forest were guilty of sloppy defending for the two first-half goals, though. Rating: 6/10
Willy Boly: A case of what might have been, had Yates’ header not glanced off the defender’s “offside” foot for the one which was ruled out. Had a few shaky moments defensively. Rating: 5.5/10
Renan Lodi: A decent free-kick for the “goal” which was disallowed, but otherwise set-pieces were comfortably dealt with by the hosts - and more then once resulted in a troublesome counterattack. Rating: 5.5/10
Remo Freuler: Worked really hard in the middle of the pitch and wasn’t afraid of getting stuck in. Played some neat passes when the Reds had decent spells in the game. Rating: 6.5/10
Ryan Yates: Continues to have a fine season and would have deserved his goal, had it stood. Did his best to try to drag Forest into the game after they had gone behind. Rating: 7/10
Orel Mangala: Started well in both halves, hitting the side-netting a few minutes after the break. Could have done with seeing more of that. Rating: 6/10
Jesse Lingard: A worry to see him forced off, particularly as he had been playing with heavy strapping on one thigh. Not the way he would have wanted his night to end against his former club, having shown some neat touches. Rating: 6/10
Brennan Johnson: After a quiet first half, saw more of the ball in the second period. Just needed to make the most of it when he got into some promising positions. Rating: 6/10
Taiwo Awoniyi: Said he’d worked on his hold-up play during the break, and he certainly offered a bit more of a physical presence. Generally used his strength well. Rating: 6/10
Subs
Lewis O’Brien (for Lingard, 53mins): Took up a different role to begin with. Perhaps not one Forest will look to persevere with. Rating: 6/10
Sam Surridge (for Awoniyi, 62mins): Tested the goalkeeper and was fairly bright during his time on the pitch. Rating: 6.5/10
Harry Toffolo (for Lodi, 62mins): Game was all but over by the time he entered the fray. Tried to stick to his task, at least. Rating: 6/10
Emmanuel Dennis (for Mangala, 62mins): Difficult to have an impact, but the visitors did keep trying to get forward. Rating: 6/10
Neco Williams (for Aurier, 74mins): Could feel a bit hard done by at being left out of the XI, but pressed his case for a recall. Rating: 6/10
Subs not used: Smith, Cook, Colback, McKenna.
Who was your Forest man of the match? Have your say in the comments below
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