The evolution of Nottingham Forest under Nuno Espirito Santo is already one of the stories of the season.
But Forest’s Portuguese head coach understands that if their remarkable rise from relegation battlers to Champions League contenders is to be maintained, his side’s development and growth cannot stop.
Briefly on Saturday, after becoming the first team to win at Brentford in the Premier League this season, Forest rose to third in the table.
It was the first time Thomas Frank’s side — who had previously averaged 3.25 goals per game in their previous eight home matches — had failed to score at the Gtech Community Stadium.
Forest have now already won as many away games (five) as they did in the 2022-23 and 2023-24 seasons combined. They have secured 31 points from their 17 league games, which is the earliest they have reached the 30+ points mark in the top flight since 1987-88, when they finished third.
Wing-back to wing-back. 💫 pic.twitter.com/8MCHURIBSj
— Nottingham Forest (@NFFC) December 21, 2024
Their start is now better than the last Forest side to qualify for European football: back when Frank Clark’s team finished third in the Premier League almost three decades ago.
The landmark moments just keep coming and it has prompted people to quietly ask the question: could Forest be contenders for European football again? Could they even push for Champions League qualification?
Ask Nuno for his thoughts on such matters and he will offer his now familiar response about never looking further than ‘the next game’. But it is precisely because of the Forest coach’s focused mentality that they are in this position in the first place; that Forest fans are daring to dream.
During pre-season, Nuno sat his players down and told them to believe in themselves. He also spent weeks finely honing their 4-2-3-1 approach. He wanted his team to be fiercely defensively solid — and equipped to hurt teams on the break with swift counter-attacks.
They are definitely that but Nuno knows Forest must continue to find ways to improve if those dreams are to become reality. As the season has gone on, he has worked on the training ground to add more strings to Forest’s bow.
Two in two for @AnthonyElanga. 🔥 pic.twitter.com/HhDMQwEO0E
— Nottingham Forest (@NFFC) December 21, 2024
The notion is simple: to ensure that the team that has surprised so many this season — including Liverpool and Manchester United — can continue to do so.
“We have started to do that already — to look at different ways we can play. Teams cannot guess the way we are going to play,” said winger Anthony Elanga, who scored Forest’s decisive second goal in the capital on Saturday, in a recent interview with The Athletic.
“They will be asking questions about us before games. Will he play? Where will he play? Will he come in? I think we are equipped to surprise people with the options we have. We want to be a team that is unpredictable while still maintaining that core idea of being hard to break down and hurting teams on the break.”
Forest had played with a 3-4-3 formation previously, most notably when they had been trying to see out games. At Brentford, they handed a first league start to Morato in a three-man central defence that also included his fellow Brazilian Murillo and Serbia captain Nikola Milenkovic, as they started with that formation for the first time since pre-season.
In the centre of the pitch, Nuno opted for a bold pairing of Elliot Anderson and Morgan Gibbs-White — the two most creative players in his squad. A clever ball from Anderson to Callum Hudson-Odoi was decisive in the build-up to the first goal while Gibbs-White made eight tackles during his 74 minutes on the pitch.
“It is about the balance,” said Nuno afterwards. “If one goes, like Elliot went in the build-up to the goal, then the other one has to stay back, as Morgan did. They are both young but they are both mature enough to realise this. They have good knowledge of the game
The attacking ambition of the wing-backs was also integral to the opener, as Neco Williams was fed by Hudson-Odoi after advancing into space down the left side, from where he cut a precise ball right across the face of the penalty area for Aina, who was arrived and delivered a precise finish at the far post.
Forest are the very definition of a team. They help each other out. Not just among the three central defenders, who formed a formidable unit — with Milenkovic (11) and Murillo (9) making 20 clearances between them. When Ryan Yates and Nico Dominguez came off the bench in the 63rd minute, they added fresh energy and determination in the centre of the pitch.
From the first minute to the last, Nuno’s tactical approach was spot on.
“It (the 3-4-3) is a shape we have been using regularly in the final moments of games. It is about building and trying to find solutions,” said Nuno. “In this league, you face different opponents, you have to find a way to adapt to them. Our three central defenders complement each other very well. They cover, they are fast, aggressive and good on the ball.
“There is a lot of room for improvement. Our message since pre-season has been that it is not about the table, it is about always finding ways to improve, always finding new solutions. We must do that again against Tottenham.”
Following this win, only Chelsea (19) have claimed more away points than Forest (17). Before facing Tottenham at the City Ground on Boxing Day, Forest will celebrate Christmas in the Champions League places.
Last April and May, Forest were desperately hoping teams like Burnley, Sheffield United, Luton and Everton would drop points as they fought to avoid relegation. Now they find themselves hoping the likes of Arsenal, Chelsea, Aston Villa and Manchester City slip up as they seek to strengthen their position in the top four.
The change is already incredible but, in Nuno, they have a head coach who understands that if this remarkable journey is to continue, Forest’s evolution must be maintained.
(Top Photo: MI News/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
