Nuno Espirito Santo’s first words in his post-match press conference summed up the significance of an otherwise run-of-the-mill 1-0 home win.
In the same manner as his team’s play against Ipswich Town on Saturday, the Nottingham Forest head coach’s words were efficient, effective and to the point.
“I have said this over and over and over again: this should be our mindset,” Nuno said. “Not only as a team and a squad, but as a club. We have to be very hard to beat. The players, we spoke with them about this in the week — the need to go back to basics. The basics are simple. It is about being solid. Solid is being aggressive, it is working hard, it is helping your team-mates. We did that.”
In defeats against Newcastle United and Arsenal in their previous two matches, Forest were beaten by good sides and impressive performances. But most concerning was that, in the process of conceding three goals in each of those games, they did not look themselves. Against Ipswich, they found the perfect time to rediscover their identity.
It was not always pretty, nor was it their best performance this season, but it was entirely Nuno-esque.
Forest have won six of their 13 Premier League games so far in an unexpectedly positive start. The fact four of the six have been by the only goal tells a significant story about some of the things that have given them that identity.
Under Nuno — before those back-to-back meetings with Newcastle and Arsenal at least — Forest had become fiercely difficult to break down; difficult to beat.
Despite those six goals, Forest still have the second-best defensive record in the division. The 13 goals they have conceded in their 13 fixtures is bettered only by leaders Liverpool (eight). Forest have kept five clean sheets in the league already, the earliest they have reached that total in the top flight since 1987-88 (when it took them only nine matches).
Nuno was critical of his side for dropping too deep and inviting Ipswich onto them in the final stages on Saturday, after he had switched formation from their usual 4-2-3-1 to operate with a three-man central defence. It made for an unnecessarily nervy finale. But Ipswich still had only an expected goals (xG) tally of 0.6, and goalkeeper Matz Sels did not have a significant save to make — although Ola Aina did clear a Cameron Burgess header off the line in the first half.
Aina was outstanding at left-back, but quickly moved over to his normal position on the other side of the back four, with Neco Williams — handed a rare start in preference to Alex Moreno — putting in an energetic shift on the left.
Murillo stood out as usual, as he made seven clearances and three tackles, while also embarking on a rampaging Wes Morgan-style run into the opposition penalty area from inside his own half. Nikola Milenkovic was no less imposing alongside him.
Given the run of fixtures coming up, this would be the perfect time for Forest to rediscover that defensive resolve; to remember what carried them to the lofty heights of sixth in the table on Saturday evening.
Forest must now prepare themselves for challenging trips to Manchester City and then Manchester United over the next week, followed by a home game against Aston Villa and a visit to Brentford — who have the best home record in the Premier League — before entertaining an unpredictable but dangerous Tottenham side. In the context of what is to come, this win might become more significant.
It was not just in terms of defensive resolve that Forest looked more like their old selves.
Chris Wood’s emphatic penalty was enough to move him level with Bryan Roy as Forest’s leading Premier League top goalscorer, with 24. In the coming weeks, he will surely make that record his own. But what was in some ways more significant was that Wood, with his nine goals, has scored more than the rest of the squad combined. Forest have found the net 16 times — the New Zealander has contributed 56 per cent of those goals.
At the time of writing, that was the biggest contribution of anybody in the Premier League, with Erling Haaland having scored 12 of Manchester City’s 22 goals — 55 per cent. Since Nuno’s first game in charge in December last year, Wood (20) is one of only three players to score at least 20 Premier League goals, along with Haaland (25) and Cole Palmer of Chelsea (24).
Forest’s negotiations with Wood over a new contract, with his current one set to expire next summer, might be the most important piece of business they conduct in the coming months.
Being able to defend well and having a prolific goalscorer is key, but there are other factors involved.
Forest immediately looked better for having two of their most influential, creative players – Morgan Gibbs-White and Elliot Anderson – back following injury.
Jota Silva, the Portuguese winger, looked a little rough around the edges at times in a broadly encouraging first Premier League start. He had far more positive moments than bad and won the decisive penalty when he was clipped by Sammie Szmodics.
Ryan Yates was as combative as ever in midfield, but also showed sufficient restraint to avoid a fifth yellow card of the season, which would see him collect a one-match ban. He also produced an outlandish piece of footwork on the touchline in front of the dugouts to offer a reminder that he can play a bit.
The same is true of this team as a whole — Saturday underlined what Forest are about under Nuno and the qualities that have underpinned their impressive start to the season. With 22 points from their 13 games (W6 D4 L3), only in 1994-95 (eight matches) and 1995-96 (10) have they reached 20 points quicker.
Forest will need every one of those qualities if they are to maintain this start as they face their most challenging run of fixtures so far.
(Top photo: Marc Atkins/Getty Images)
