Győri ETO

Awoniyi doubles up as much-changed Forest step towards safety and add to Chelsea gloom

After making eight changes for this match, Vítor Pereira was asked why, with Nottingham Forest just three points clear of the relegation zone, he had taken such a risk with his personnel. “We change the players, but we keep the spirit,” he said. After this result, Chelsea’s hierarchy might be wondering quite what the “spirit” thing amounts to and where they might buy some of their own. Forest ran through the home side, extending their unbeaten Premier League run to seven matches and doubling their gap to the bottom three with just three games remaining. Pereira was also able to rotate his squad before Thursday’s Europa League semi-final second leg against Aston Villa. For Chelsea, however, this was a sixth straight Premier League defeat for the first time since 1993, a 13th consecutive top-flight game without a clean sheet and a first (and solitary) goal in the league since the beginning of March. That the boos from the Stamford Bridge crowd were less oppressive at the finish than at half-time was only because so many had already left the stadium. Led by two-goal Taiwo Awoniyi and the winger Dilane Bakwa, Forest’s understudies were every inch the match of the amortised investments they lined up against. The visitors went ahead in the second minute after Bakwa caught Marc Cucurella on his heels, peeled away on the right and dug out a cross to the back post which Awoniyi headed home. By the 15th minute the lead had doubled and from precisely the same route: this time Bakwa simply dribbled past Cucurella before crossing and Awoniyi went for the ball again, only to fall to the ground after Malo Gusto tugged on his shirt. Following some back and forth with the video assistant referee, a penalty was given and Igor Jesus finished coolly. Hardly the ideal start in front of a crowd on the verge of mutiny. But Chelsea’s performance did not kick on from there, nor even stagger back on to its feet. They remained sluggish across the piece, stunningly short on attacking ideas and consistently bested in duels by Pereira’s side. If those changes had seemed bold before kick-off, by half-time it seemed simply that the Forest manager had read the match-up correctly. Calum McFarlane, Chelsea’s interim head coach, looked largely impotent on the sidelines. Before half-time he was forced to withdraw Jesse Derry, whom he had just given his Premier League debut, after the 18-year-old suffered what looked like a serious head injury after challenging for a corner with fellow teenager Zach Abbott. Both players were substituted under concussion protocols but while Abbott walked off, Derry left on a stretcher. Later, Chelsea confirmed Derry had been taken to hospital and that he was “conscious, talking and undergoing precautionary checks”. The referee, Anthony Taylor, awarded a penalty for Abbott’s challenge but – after a break in play of more than 10 minutes – Cole Palmer was unable to convert, Matz Sels diving low to his right to save. Pereira brought on three of his rested stars at half-time and those changes decided the game almost immediately. Within five minutes of the restart one reinforcement, Elliot Anderson, had split the lines with a pass to another, Morgan Gibbs-White, who ran beyond Cucurella once more. The Forest No 10 – in such hot form in recent weeks – laid the ball on a plate for Awoniyi who timed his run perfectly to grab his second goal of the day. The cameo from Gibbs-White was brief. In the 60th minute he and Robert Sánchez were involved in another clash of heads, this time as the pair tried to chase down a loose ball. With a bandage around his head and what looked like a lot of blood underneath, Gibbs-White was withdrawn for Chris Wood after another lengthy stoppage in play. Sánchez was replaced by Filip Jörgensen. Forest now have a nervous wait on Gibbs-White’s fitness ahead of the Villa match. With just over a quarter of an hour remaining Chelsea had the ball in the net, João Pedro heading home after seeing his first effort saved by Sels, only for the VAR to overturn it. Into added time, however, the Brazilian did score, taking a Cucurella delivery on his chest and smashing in an overhead kick. On this occasion there was no intervention from VAR, but as Chelsea recorded their first Premier League goal in seven games, there was not much in the way of cheering either.

2026-05-04

The Premier League finally has a relegation battle | Jonathan Wilson

It was a good weekend for Nottingham Forest, although perhaps not as good as it looked like it might be on Friday night. That evening, when they handed Sunderland their record defeat at the Stadium of Light, winning 5-0, Forest must have been expecting to pull away from at least one of their relegation rivals. As it turned out, though, they ended the weekend where they began, five points clear of third-bottom Tottenham and three clear of West Ham with four games remaining after both the London strugglers also won. It was a classic Saturday afternoon in the relegation battle, the sort that is rare these days with games so spread out over a weekend. But Tottenham’s match at Wolves and West Ham against Everton kicked off at the same time, which meant that Tomáš Souček’s goal six minutes after half-time not only prompted celebration at the London Stadium but also anxiety among the Spurs fans who had travelled to Molineux. Then João Palhinha put Tottenham ahead with eight minutes remaining and Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall levelled for Everton with two minutes to go. Had it stayed like that, Tottenham would have been out of the relegation zone on goal difference. But Callum Wilson scored for West Ham two minutes into injury-time, lifting them back above Spurs and within three points of Forest. In that sense, nothing changed at the bottom, except that Leeds, unbeaten in five in the league, who may have thought a run like that would have dragged them to guaranteed safety, are only a point above Forest. Newcastle, who lost their fourth successive league game at Arsenal, are only two points above that. Even Crystal Palace and Sunderland, one point and four points further clear respectively, are not mathematically safe. Realistically, it’s unlikely that Spurs, after 118 days without a league victory before Saturday, are suddenly about to win the three out of their last four games to bring Palace into play but, equally, it seems very plausible that 40 points, the traditional threshold for presumed safety, may not be enough this season. Only three sides in Premier League history have ever been relegated having amassed at least 40 points: Sunderland in 1996-97 and Bolton in 1997-98 – both got 40 – while West Ham managed 42 in 2002-03. The contrast with the past two seasons when the team third from bottom picked up 26 then 25 points is striking. Not since 2015-16 when Newcastle went down with 37 points has a side with more than 35 been relegated. So what’s changed? It’s entirely possible this season could be an exception. It’s possible as well that Tottenham lose their four remaining games and go down with 34; although they have shown more fight under Roberto De Zerbi, confidence remains low and their injury problems have been compounded by Xavi Simons sustaining a ruptured anterior cruciate ligament against Wolves. The biggest change, though, has been the performance of the promoted sides. Last season they got 59 points between them, the season before 66. This season, they have already amassed 106. While Burnley have struggled, Leeds and Sunderland spent significantly and well on players. It’s unlikely that Coventry and whichever two of Ipswich, Millwall, Middlesbrough, Southampton, Wrexham, Hull and Derby come up with them will match that level of expenditure. Though it is possible, as Ipswich and Southampton have recent Premier League experience and Wrexham have their Hollywood backing. More generally, this has been the best season for the Premier League’s middle classes since that 2015-16 season, when Leicester won the league, Southampton came sixth and West Ham seventh. The following summer was marked by a wave of spending from the traditional giants and the brief bout of equality was swept away. The Premier League’s profit and sustainability rules (PSR) have a bad reputation, thanks in part to aspirant clubs with wealthy owners who feel they prevent the sort of investment that might allow them to reach the next tier of clubs, but this perhaps is a sign of the system working, evidence of how incremental improvement and sensible husbandry can make even a relatively modest side competitive without richer clubs just surging away. PSR, though, will be replaced next season by squad cost ratio, which appears to allow those with deep pockets to exercise their advantage more thoroughly. For now, though, the Premier League has been left not only with a proper title race but also with a true battle against the drop. This is how it ought to be, with every matchday bringing multiple dramatic twists and each of the four sides likeliest to occupy that third relegation slot having unexpectedly found at least some late-season form. And that has one or two other sides beginning to feel a little uneasy. This is an extract from Soccer with Jonathan Wilson, a weekly look from the Guardian US at the game in Europe and beyond. Subscribe for free here. Have a question for Jonathan? Email [email protected], and he’ll answer the best in a future edition

2026-04-27

The Premier League finally has a relegation battle | Jonathan Wilson

It was a good weekend for Nottingham Forest, although perhaps not as good as it looked like it might be on Friday night. That evening, when they handed Sunderland their record defeat at the Stadium of Light, winning 5-0, Forest must have been expecting to pull away from at least one of their relegation rivals. As it turned out, though, they ended the weekend where they began, five points clear of third-bottom Tottenham and three clear of West Ham with four games remaining after both the London strugglers also won. It was a classic Saturday afternoon in the relegation battle, the sort that is rare these days with games so spread out over a weekend. But Tottenham’s match at Wolves and West Ham against Everton kicked off at the same time, which meant that Tomáš Souček’s goal six minutes after half-time not only prompted celebration at the London Stadium but also anxiety among the Spurs fans who had travelled to Molineux. Then João Palhinha put Tottenham ahead with eight minutes remaining and Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall levelled for Everton with two minutes to go. Had it stayed like that, Tottenham would have been out of the relegation zone on goal difference. But Callum Wilson scored for West Ham two minutes into injury-time, lifting them back above Spurs and within three points of Forest. In that sense, nothing changed at the bottom, except that Leeds, unbeaten in five in the league, who may have thought a run like that would have dragged them to guaranteed safety, are only a point above Forest. Newcastle, who lost their fourth successive league game at Arsenal, are only two points above that. Even Crystal Palace and Sunderland, one point and four points further clear respectively, are not mathematically safe. Realistically, it’s unlikely that Spurs, after 118 days without a league victory before Saturday, are suddenly about to win the three out of their last four games to bring Palace into play but, equally, it seems very plausible that 40 points, the traditional threshold for presumed safety, may not be enough this season. Only three sides in Premier League history have ever been relegated having amassed at least 40 points: Sunderland in 1996-97 and Bolton in 1997-98 – both got 40 – while West Ham managed 42 in 2002-03. The contrast with the past two seasons when the team third from bottom picked up 26 then 25 points is striking. Not since 2015-16 when Newcastle went down with 37 points has a side with more than 35 been relegated. So what’s changed? It’s entirely possible this season could be an exception. It’s possible as well that Tottenham lose their four remaining games and go down with 34; although they have shown more fight under Roberto De Zerbi, confidence remains low and their injury problems have been compounded by Xavi Simons sustaining a ruptured anterior cruciate ligament against Wolves. The biggest change, though, has been the performance of the promoted sides. Last season they got 59 points between them, the season before 66. This season, they have already amassed 106. While Burnley have struggled, Leeds and Sunderland spent significantly and well on players. It’s unlikely that Coventry and whichever two of Ipswich, Millwall, Middlesbrough, Southampton, Wrexham, Hull and Derby come up with them will match that level of expenditure. Though it is possible, as Ipswich and Southampton have recent Premier League experience and Wrexham have their Hollywood backing. More generally, this has been the best season for the Premier League’s middle classes since that 2015-16 season, when Leicester won the league, Southampton came sixth and West Ham seventh. The following summer was marked by a wave of spending from the traditional giants and the brief bout of equality was swept away. The Premier League’s profit and sustainability rules (PSR) have a bad reputation, thanks in part to aspirant clubs with wealthy owners who feel they prevent the sort of investment that might allow them to reach the next tier of clubs, but this perhaps is a sign of the system working, evidence of how incremental improvement and sensible husbandry can make even a relatively modest side competitive without richer clubs just surging away. PSR, though, will be replaced next season by squad cost ratio, which appears to allow those with deep pockets to exercise their advantage more thoroughly. For now, though, the Premier League has been left not only with a proper title race but also with a true battle against the drop. This is how it ought to be, with every matchday bringing multiple dramatic twists and each of the four sides likeliest to occupy that third relegation slot having unexpectedly found at least some late-season form. And that has one or two other sides beginning to feel a little uneasy. This is an extract from Soccer with Jonathan Wilson, a weekly look from the Guardian US at the game in Europe and beyond. Subscribe for free here. Have a question for Jonathan? Email [email protected], and he’ll answer the best in a future edition

2026-04-27

Gibbs-White’s early strike decisive as Nottingham Forest edge past 10-man Porto

The final whistle brought a second of relief before the celebrations truly kicked in after Nottingham Forest secured a place in the Europa League semi-finals. It should have been easier but nothing is simple at the City Ground as they made hard work of overcoming Porto, who played almost the entire match with 10 men. Morgan Gibbs-White settled the match, to set up an all-English clash with Aston Villa for a place in the final. His goal came in the aftermath of Jan Bednarek’s early sending off and should have laid the foundations for more but Forest’s finishing was poor, forcing them to grind out the victory by surviving Porto hitting the crossbar twice. Even so, the ultimate jubilation was reminiscent of those great nights of the 1980s under Brian Clough when the club last reached this stage in Europe. “We need to suffer together and we need to feel proud at the end of a game,” Vítor Pereira said. “The red card has an impact on the game. We played a very good first half and should have scored more goals to kill the game.” Where the Europa League sits in Forest’s list of priorities has fluctuated over the season but Pereira selected almost his strongest team, although Elliot Anderson was absent after the death of his mother, Helen. It was a sign of intent that this club wants to go all the way to Istanbul, even with the risk of Premier League relegation still a serious possibility. As in the first leg, Porto started quicker, threatening Stefan Ortega’s goal after 60 seconds but the goalkeeper stood strong to repel a Terem Moffi jab when through on goal. If it had gone in, the City Ground would have been silenced but instead it was roaring, knowing the significant role the supporters could play. A hush did come over the stadium soon after when Chris Wood, who returned only recently from six months out with a left knee injury, went to ground clutching his right knee after being caught by a high boot from Bednarek. The concern dissipated from a home perspective as the New Zealander got to his feet, while the visitors awaited the review of a VAR check, which resulted in them being reduced to 10 men with 82 minutes remaining. If the stadium was buoyant before, it was positively bouncing four minutes later when Gibbs-White made use of the additional space available, driving at the defence before his shot from 20 yards deflected off Pablo Rosario to wrongfoot Diogo Costa. The Forest captain ran to the fans and collected an Anderson shirt with the message “Family first, we are all with you”. “A very sad situation, everybody has Elliot in their hearts,” Pereira said. “The players think about him. My condolences to the family, we are here to help him.” Wood’s recovery was short-lived and he was forced off, with Igor Jesus taking his place. It did not affect the flow of the game as Forest continued to dominate, camping out in the final third in search of a second that could finish the tie. There was plenty of endeavour and threat, with the players especially eager to focus on Sunday’s visit of Burnley, but they struggled to test Diogo Costa. Corners were causing problems, however, with Igor Jesus heading over a glorious chance and Murillo sliding wide. Francesco Farioli indicated his plan with a quadruple change to start the second half. It did not make any difference to the direction of travel as Forest kept pushing forward and Igor Jesus forced Diogo Costa into a smart save from a first-time shot but every missed chance increased the tension. Nerves and the crossbar were rattled when a Porto counterattack twisted and turned Forest. Seko Fofana got down the left and had the composure to chip the ball to William Gomes at the far post from where his volley assaulted the woodwork but he could only grimace as it bounced down on the wrong side. It was a warning to everyone in red that this tie was far from over. Calm was replaced by panic as Pereira prowled the touchline, seeking a ruthless streak in his side, who managed to get only a quarter of their 20 shots on target. A little after the hour mark the centre-back Nikola Milenkovic was sent on to fortify the defence, replacing the winger Dan Ndoye, offering an indication of the Forest coach’s thinking. When Alan Varela thrashed a shot against the crossbar with six minutes remaining, a hush descended. “We deserve to be in the semi-final but we have to accept the result on the pitch,” Farioli said. The digital clock on the halfway line was just as compelling as the action on the pitch, every second feeling like a successful pass. It felt like an eternity for many but one worth waiting for as the flaws are quickly forgotten when a team reaches its first European semi-final for 42 years. “One of the best nights I’ve had at the City Ground, thanks to the fans and everyone that’s made it happen,” Gibbs-White said.

2026-04-16

Nottingham Forest v Porto: Europa League quarter-final, second leg – live

58 min: … nothing. But Forest can be thankful to still be in the lead. William Gomes absolutely thrashed that volley off the crossbar! 57 min: A quick throw by Porto down the left. Fofana chases after it and curls long. William Gomes meets it with a high kick at the far post. His effort beats Ortega, but batters off the underside of the bar, down, out and away! Then Forest immediately go up the other end, Gibbs-White’s shot deflected wide left. And from that corner … 56 min: The Porto fans are giving it plenty. Such a lovely atmosphere at the City Ground, as the home fans generate a response. 54 min: Hudson-Odoi whistles down the left wing and crosses for Gibbs-White, who wins a header but puts it over the bar, and fouls Moura while he does so. “Like Nottingham, the city of Porto also sits by a storied river, although the Estádio do Dragão isn’t within kicking distance of the Douro,” writes Peter Oh. “It would require a foot like a nuclear traction engine to launch a ball into the water. Ballon Douro?” 52 min: One of the Porto backroom staff is shown yellow for coming to the touchline and telling it as he sees it. Meanwhile on the subject of balls in the river, as touched upon during the break by Justin Kavanagh, here’s Dave Manby: “Shrewsbury Town in its old ground, the Gay Meadow, had Fred Davies who got a free ticket to fish balls out of the Severn in his coracle. When a ball went over the stand you would see a door open in the stand and he’d set off for the ball. His old coracle is on display at the new ground.” 51 min: Aina advances down the right and cuts back for Igor Jesus, who rather scuffs his first-time shot straight at Diogo Costa, who parries. Incidentally, during the break, Tony Woodcock, who won the league, two League Cups and the 1979 European Cup with Forest, was awarded a second European Cup medal for his early work in the 1980 campaign, before he’d left for Cologne. A lovely moment for the Forest legend. 49 min: Williams dances his way into the Porto box down the left, but his shot is blocked. Both teams appear to have been switched to Carpe Diem Mode. 47 min: Porto are on the front foot immediately, and Dominguez clips William Gomes on the edge of the Forest D. A free kick. Gomes takes it himself, and blooters straight into the wall. A statement of intent by Porto, who have clearly come out not intending to die wondering. Porto get the second half underway … and they’ve made four changes. Jakub Kiwior, Victor Froholdt, Alan Varela and Francisco Moura come on for Gabriel Veiga, Zaidu, Borja Sainz and Alberto Costa. Meanwhile one change for Forest, who replace Omari Hutchinson with Callum Hudson-Odoi. Half-time postbag. “For a neutral like me, this is the Clough v Mourinho derby, right? Forest will forever be in the shadow of Ol’ Big ‘Ed, likewise Porto and the Special One. Some teams just can’t escape their past, can they? Yeah, I’m looking at you, Arsenal and Dundee Manchester United” – Simon McMahon “You’d have to think Morgan Gibbs-White is feeling cautiously positive on his decision not to join Spurs this season” – Hugh Collins “Nice shot of the City Ground and the River Trent! A hundred years ago when I played Sunday league in the local park, we’d give a local one pound (punt) to fish out what he called ‘river balls’. Do Forest (or Fulham) have such an arrangement, I wonder?” – Justin Kavanagh It’s all gone Forest’s way. But the ten men of Porto will be happy to have limited the damage, and as the clock ticks on through the second half, you never know. All very much still in the balance. 45 min +5: Gabriel Veiga sends the free kick in flat and hard, at washing-line height. Alberto Costa rises at the near post and flicks a header on, but the ball sails well wide left. The first sharp intake of breath from the Forest support, right on the stroke of half time. A little glimmer of promise at last for ten-man Porto. 45 min +4: Ndoye clumsily clips Gabriel Veiga, who was going nowhere down the right. A chance for Porto to commit everyone upfield at the free kick. They load the Forest box. 45 min +2: Ndoye sends a delicious outside-of-boot cross in from a tight position on the left. Dominguez, arriving late, meets it six yards out, but eyebrow-flicks a header across goal and wide right. The only thing that ends up in the net is Dominguez himself. Big chance. 45 min: There will be five additional first-half minutes, the VAR check, sending off, injury to Wood, all that. 44 min: The Porto bench empties as Aina hurdles William Gomes, studiously avoiding making contact with foot on head. But Veiga thinks something saucy has gone on, and comes across to shove Aina angrily. Porto want the numbers levelling up, but come off it and come on. The referee calms everything down quickly enough. 43 min: Hutchinson crosses from the right. Another easy claim for Diogo Costa. Then a cutback that is easily picked off. Hutchinson’s radar suddenly on the blink, after a promising start to the match. His boss Vítor Pereira, frustrated, comes to the touchline and issues the player some beneficial advice in the strident style. 41 min: Fofana is forced to change into a new shirt, the last one having been ripped to bits by Ndoye’s grasping hand. Not 100 percent sure how Ndoye wasn’t booked for that; it was as obvious as a tug-back gets. 40 min: Hutchinson, on the right-hand corner of the Porto box, goes for a curler towards the top left. Not enough whip, not enough pace. Easy for Diogo Costa. Then a miserable 60 seconds for the Forest player ends with a booking for a cynical hug on Zaidu. 39 min: Forest push Porto back and probe this way and that. No way through. The hosts well on top, though. 37 min: Another Forest corner leads to some head tennis in the Porto box. Jair Cunha brings some order to events, cutting the ball back for the in-rushing Murillo, who pearls a first-time drive from the edge of the box inches wide right. Not sure Diogo Costa was getting to that had it been on target. It would have been a cute assist and finish. 36 min: Williams is in the process of kicking clear when Alberto Costa arrives and lashes at his ankle. Luckily Williams hadn’t planted his foot, or that could have been nasty. It’s a booking, though, and Alberto Costa will miss Porto’s next European match. 34 min: Hutchinson is causing Porto all sorts of trouble down the right. He teases Moffi and Sainz before delivering a ball to the far stick, earning a corner. Williams sends it long from the left, and Igor Jesus wins a header on the right-hand corner of the six-yard box. He has to work Diogo Costa, or at the very least head back across goal. But he heads harmlessly wide right and high. 32 min: Ndoye bursts into a little bit of space down the middle and is skittled from behind by Moffi, who takes a booking for the team. 31 min: Porto spend a little bit of time in the Forest half. They don’t achieve much, but it’s baby steps for the visitors at the moment. 29 min: A shot of Wood in the dugout. Ice on the knee. The swelling was visible earlier; hopefully it’s nothing more than bruising. On TNT, Glenn Hoddle, who knows a thing or two about career-bothering knee injuries, suggests internal injury is unlikely, given the fairly calm look on Wood’s face, and the fact he walked off without showing too much discomfort. Here’s to Hoddle being correct, Wood is certainly due some good luck. 27 min: Hutchinson, once again making a nuisance of himself down the right, flashes a shot into the side netting. It’s all Forest. 25 min: Ndoye barges his way down the left and wins a corner. Williams wastes it by looping it straight down Diogo Costa’s throat. 24 min: Forest have enjoyed 61 percent of possession so far. That extremely early Moffi chance apart, absolutely nothing has occurred in the Forest final third. Porto yet to recover from the early double blow. 22 min: Murillo opts to shoot for goal instead, and shanks a comically dreadful effort many yards wide left and into the stand containing the Porto travelling support. Haven’t they suffered enough already? 21 min: More space for Hutchinson out on the right. He teases a couple of Porto defenders, but isn’t able to break into the box. He tugs back for Aina, whose careful cross is claimed by Diogo Costa. But the hosts come again through Hutchinson, down the same wing, and he draws a foul from Gabriel Veiga. Free kick, and a chance to load the box. 19 min: Gibbs-White sends Hutchinson into space down the right. Hutchinson whips a lovely low curling cross through the Porto six-yard box. Ndoye stoops in at the far post but can’t connect. So close to a second; that’d have been a lovely goal. “Having seen Porto perform near flawlessly against Stuttgart, having the air of a team peaking at the right time, they were my pick for winning the Europa League,” writes Kári Tulinius. “Bednarek’s challenge isn’t quite in the same league as a 40-yard own goal, but it’s still considerably less clever than I expected the Dragons to be. Now, a man and a goal down, I suspect they probably won’t make my prediction come true.” 17 min: Igor Jesus’s shift is seconds old when he’s chasing after a long pass down the right. He earns a corner. Williams sends it long. Igor Jesus, not messing around and wasting no time, chests down but can’t get a shot away. Porto clear their lines. They need to clear their heads and quick, or this tie is getting away from them in short order. 16 min: Wood goes down. He’s taken a proper whack to the inside of his knee. He won’t be able to continue. Bednarek owes him an apology. Igor Jesus comes on in Wood’s place. 14 min: During the celebration, Gibbs-White holds up a Forest No8 shirt, a message for Elliot Anderson and his family in this difficult time. A poignant dedication, a team together. Gibbs-White advances down the inside-left channel again. He shoots again, this time towards the bottom left. The ball takes a big nick off Rosario, sending the ball to the right, into the centre of the net, past the wrong-footed Diogo Costa. Forest grabbing their opportunity with both hands here! 11 min: The home fans send their condolences to the Anderson family in the only way they can, by singing Elliot’s song. The Geordie Maradona. 10 min: Forest know the momentum is theirs already, and Gibbs-White advances down the inside-left channel, entering the box and threading a shot-cum-cross towards the bottom right. Wood sticks out a toe in the hope of prodding home, but can’t reach the ball, which dribbles wide right. 9 min: Bednarek makes a small performance of arguing the toss, but his heart’s not really in it. He surely knows he’s bang to rights. Eventually he disappears down the tunnel sadly. A huge early boost for Forest … especially as Wood is fine to continue. He felt that all right, but the pain of impact seems to have subsided. 8 min: Bednarek stuck out his leg on the horizontal. High. He missed the ball by a long way. His studs caught the inside of Wood’s knee. That was an awful challenge … and the referee doesn’t take too long to draw a TV screen in the sky before drawing the red card from his pocket. The blood drains from Bednarek’s face. He knows what’s coming. Off he goes! 7 min: Bednarek’s brow furrows. He knows he’s in bother here. And VAR calls the referee over to the screen. 6 min: Wood looks to flick the ball past Bednarek in the centre circle. Bednarek sticks out a leg and high-kicks his studs on the inside of Wood’s knee. Oof. No booking, just a free kick, but that’s a really poor challenge. VAR is going to take a look at a potential red card. 4 min: Sangare releases Gibbs-White down the right. Promising for Forest … until the whistle goes, Sangare having come through the back of Alberto Costa on the touchline. The correct decision, if annoyingly belated from a Forest point of view, everyone all excited for a second. 2 min: It’s an absolutely belting atmosphere, both sets of fans giving it plenty. But Porto nearly quieten the home fans in short order, Moffi latching onto a prod down the inside-right channel and attempting to flick past Ortega. The Forest keeper swipes away. The rebound falls to William Gomes, who blazes over. Yikes. Nottingham Forest get the ball rolling. They’re defending the Trent End in this first half. The aggregate score is 1-1 after the first leg. The teams are out! Nottingham Forest in their Garibaldi red, Porto in the blue and white of the Portugal flag (of 1909, it was superseded two years later by the green-red we’re familiar with these days). A magnificent atmosphere at the City Ground. We’ll be off in a minute or two! Forest coach Vítor Pereira speaks to TNT Sports. “One chance … just today, not tomorrow … today is the game … we have to do everything to show our ambition … show our quality, personality and organisation to be in the next round … in three days we play again in an important game in the league … Porto play with intensity … we must learn from the last game and play on a better level today … my condolence to the [Anderson] family … a very sad situation and we need to respect.” Our man Will Unwin is currently sunning himself on the rolling verdant verges of the River Trent. Here’s his pre-match scene-setter. It is currently a calm night on the banks of the Trent, although it will get quite lively come kick-off. There are plenty of Porto fans inside the City Ground, both in the away end and elsewhere in the corporate areas. The Portuguese side will be disappointed they did not come away with from the first leg after an impressive display but Forest dug in to ensure things are level after 90 minutes. Vitor Pereira has selected a strong team, with centre-back the only area he has selected a backup in the form of Jair Cunha. If the Premier League side do get this done, it will be a historic night for the club and the home supporters will play their part. The bad news for them is Martim Fernandes is not playing, so they will have to do their own dirty work today. Forest have five players who are one yellow card away from suspension. Of tonight’s starters, Murillo and Morgan Gibbs-White are on the tightrope; Morato, Igor Jesus and Ryan Yates will also need to watch themselves should they come on. Six members of the Porto starting line-up are a booking away from missing out on the first leg of the semi should their team make it. Jan Bednarek, William Gomes, Gabriel Veiga, Zaidu, Pablo Rosario and Alberto Costa are all on Behaviour Watch, as is Dominik Prpić should he see action tonight. Nottingham Forest make five changes from last week’s starting XI. Neco Williams, Ibrahim Sangaré, Omari Hutchinson, Jair Cunha and Ola Aina come in for Morato, Ryan Yates, James McAtee, Dilane Bakwa and Zach Abbott. Elliott Anderson misses the game after the passing of his mother; he had been suspended for last week’s first leg. Porto make one change from last week. Alberto Costa replaces the injured Martim Fernandes, scorer of that unfortunate long-range own goal in the first leg. Followers of the Premier League will spot some old friends in the Porto squad: Thiago Silva won the Champions League and Club World Cup with Chelsea back in 2021, Jan Bednarek spent eight years at Southampton between 2017 and 2025, and Jakub Kiwior is currently on loan from Arsenal. Nottingham Forest: Ortega, Cunha, Murillo, Williams, Aina, Gibbs-White, Sangare, Dominguez, Ndoye, Hutchinson, Wood. Subs: Sels, Willows, Morato, Hudson-Odoi, Jesus, Lucca, Yates, McAtee, Bakwa, Milenkovic, Abbott, Sinclair. Porto: Diogo Costa, Alberto Costa, Thiago Silva, Bednarek, Zaidu, Fofana, Rosario, Veiga, Gomes, Moffi, Sainz. Subs: Ramos, Joao Costa, Kiwior, Froholdt, Pepe, Prpic, Varela, Gui, Tiago Silva, Bras, Moura, Mora. Referee: Danny Makkelie (Netherlands). Six months ago this happened … … which has got to augur well for Nottingham Forest (even if it didn’t serve as much of a promising harbinger for poor old Sean Dyche). Throw in the fact that Porto have played 24 competitive matches in England and have yet to win one (D3 L21) and all signs point to YES for Vítor Pereira and his charges. The winner of this tie gets to play the victor of Aston Villa and Bologna, and the prospect of an ATVLand rammy for a place in the final is almost too much excitement for a brain to contain. So come on Forest, giddy up Villa, let’s make this happen. Kick-off is at 8pm BST, with the scores level at 1-1 after the fiasco-tinged first leg. It’s on!

2026-04-16

Aston Villa beats Lille to reach Europa League quarterfinals

John McGinn scored and Aston Villa advanced to the quarterfinals of a European competition for the third straight year with a 2-0 victory over Lille. Villa, protecting a 1-0 lead in the return leg of the Europa League round of 16, advanced 3-0 on aggregate on Thursday to set up a quarterfinal against Bologna, which beat Roma 4-3 after extra time to advance 5-4 on aggregate. McGinn, who only returned from a knee injury a week ago, completed a move started by Villa goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez, who fed Jadon Sancho with a long pass to assist the Villa captain in the second half. Substitute Leon Bailey sealed the victory late on. Perfect penalties: Nottingham Forest reached the quarterfinals after prevailing over Midtjylland on penalties in Denmark. Substitutes Morgan Gibbs-White, Ibrahim Sangare and Neco Williams all converted from the spot while Midtjylland missed all three of their penalties. Midtjylland had stunned Forest 1-0 in the round-of-16 first leg at the City Ground, but Nicolas Dominguez and Ryan Yates scored for the visitors on Thursday. It seemed the English team was heading for the last eight before Midtjylland’s Martin Erlic scored to make the aggregate score 2-2 to force extra time. Forest coach Vitor Pereira had rested several first-choice players ahead of a key Premier League game against Tottenham on Sunday. Both teams are just above the relegation zone. Forest won the right to face Porto. William Gomes and substitute Victor Froholt scored for the Portuguese side to beat Stuttgart 2-0 at home for a 4-1 aggregate success. The Bundesliga side finished the game with 10 men. A 1-0 lead from the first leg was not enough for Panathinaikos against Real Betis, which surged to a 4-0 victory at Seville to set up a last-eight encounter with Braga. League winners out: Nine-man Lyon, the winner of the league phase, was eliminated by Celta Vigo in a 2-0 home loss following a 1-1 draw in Spain. A red card for Lyon defender Moussa Niakhate in the 19th minute proved to be decisive. Celta kept Lyon goalkeeper Dominik Greif busy until Javi Rueda’s close-range finish on the hour. Ferran Jutgla added the second on a counter in stoppage time. Shortly after that, Nicolas Tagliafico also received a red card. Celta will meet Freiburg in the quarterfinals. The German team reached the last eight for the first time after easing to a 5-1 home win over Genk to overturn a 1-0 loss from the first leg in Belgium. Sarr saves Crystal Palace: In the third-tier Conference League, Ismaila Sarr scored his second goal in extra time to lift Crystal Palace 2-1 over 10-man Larnaca and send the English team to the last eight in its first European campaign. The teams drew 0-0 last week in London. Sarr put Crystal Palace ahead before Enric Saborit equalized, forcing extra time in Cyprus. Saborit was later ejected. Crystal Palace will next face two-time runner-up Fiorentina, which won 2-1 at Polish team Rakow for a 4-2 aggregate win.

2026-03-21