Nottingham Forest boss Nuno Espirito Santo is set to maintain his ft on the bottom regardless of an excellent first half to the 2024-25 season.
Forest picked up their fifth Premier League away win of the marketing campaign, as objectives from Ola Aina and Anthony Elanga sealed a 2-0 victory at Brentford, who suffered their first dwelling league defeat of the season.
Victory on the Gtech Neighborhood Stadium lifts Nuno’s costs onto 31 factors, three away from Aston Villa in fifth, as they’re confirmed a top-four place for Christmas.
After 17 video games, it’s the earliest Forest have attained 30+ factors in a top-flight season since ending third in 1987-88 (14th recreation).
Following the win at Brentford, scorer Aina labelled the transfer into the highest 4 as a “dream”, with some Forest followers eyeing up a potential push for Europe within the second half of the marketing campaign.
Forest haven’t competed in European competitors since their look within the UEFA Cup in 1995-96, and regardless of their standing as a ‘shock package deal’ within the race for Europe this season, Nuno insisted it’s not his rapid focus.
“I believe we competed very well. We work very onerous daily, so the boys needs to be blissful and proud,” he instructed BBC Sport.
Oh what enjoyable it’s to see Forest win away. pic.twitter.com/5Ogz9ow5Oq
— Nottingham Forest (@NFFC) December 21, 2024
“The followers are blissful. Now we return to Nottingham and put together for our subsequent recreation. It’s about having fun with the second. It’s a really onerous competitors. Each recreation is so troublesome and the subsequent one goes to be very robust.
“We’re very happy with all of the issues we’ve been in a position to obtain, however we’ve achieved nothing but.
“It’s not in regards to the desk. It’s about enhancing, realising there may be nonetheless an extended solution to go, and that we’ve achieved nothing but. It’s not in regards to the desk. It’s about enhancing.”
Brentford, in the meantime, misplaced their first dwelling league recreation of the season, having beforehand misplaced at dwelling on the ultimate day of final season towards Newcastle United (2-4). Certainly, it’s simply the third time they’ve failed to attain at dwelling within the league in 2024 after goalless attracts with Brighton in April and Fulham in Might.
Regardless of the frustration of seeing their unbeaten run ended, Thomas Frank refused to be unfavorable in his post-match feedback, noting he thought the hosts deserved one thing from the sport within the closing levels.
“I assumed we carried out properly, if I’m trustworthy. I assumed we had been on prime in plenty of moments, however we had extra harmful moments with out having clear-cut probabilities,” he stated.
“Defensively, it was in all probability our greatest efficiency of the season. In fact, we’ve got conceded two objectives, however that’s completely different. The second purpose is clearly a mistake. The primary one we will do higher too, little doubt about that.”
