Manchester City knew they were coming into a storm but they are the masters of navigating hostile environments.
Pep Guardiola’s side were nowhere near their best but came up with moments of quality when it mattered to silence Nottingham Forest and keep their title charge on track. Josko Gvardiol and Erling Haaland had Kevin De Bruyne to thank for two fantastic assists as City had to bide their time to defeat a disciplined Forest fighting for Premier League survival.
Arsenal’s victory earlier in the day had ramped up the pressure but they held their nerve. The home team worked incredibly hard in their attempts to halt City and could have enjoyed a better day had it not been for poor finishing.
Forest’s feeling of injustice rippled around the City Ground from long before kick-off. There were colourful chants aimed at the Premier League, Gary Neville and Jamie Carragher, who had criticised their reaction to the defeat at Everton last week. Furthermore, there were banners dotted around the stands, one read: “The Premier League for the few, not the many.”
Naturally, every decision given against the home team was seen as incorrect by the home supporters, wondering why an innocuous clash between Ederson and Willy Boly did not merit a penalty, despite there being nothing close to a foul taking place.
Considering Forest arrived with one clean sheet in their previous 23 matches, Nuno Espírito Santo increased the level of caution, opting for a back five to try to stifle a team who had scored 17 in their past four league matches. Nine red shirts could often be found camped on the edge of the Forest box, limiting the space City were permitted to play in and it was affecting their rhythm.
City had dominated possession but only De Bruyne had tested Matz Sels in the opening half an hour until the Belgian whipped a corner for Gvardiol to head home his third goal in five games, after failing to find the net in his first 32 appearances for the club. It was a fine finish from a yard ahead of the front post, requiring power and perfect direction, leaving the goalkeeper with little chance of reacting, as Forest conceded a league-high 23rd goal from a set piece this season.
Overlapping full-backs were the key to Forest’s attacking armoury and it should have brought them an equaliser. Substitute right-back Gonzalo Montiel wandered into the box and volleyed a cross back to an unmarked Chris Wood, who completely miskicked the ball despite being in plenty of space, even having time for a touch but his first-time finish, if it can be called that, dribbled away.
On the brink of half-time there was another great chance when Ederson’s attempt to punch a corner went backwards, giving Murillo a chance to steer into an empty net from a few yards but the defender was facing the wrong way and off-balance. Murillo attempted to flick the ball goalwards but it clipped the bar and went over to remind Forest the fine margins of football.
It was Ederson’s last action, withdrawn at half-time having succumbed to the injury suffered when he and Boly collided in the box. Stefan Ortega replaced the Brazilian and Mateo Kovacic came on for Jérémy Doku, who was ineffective in the first half and the Croat would offer the control City were unable to find in the opening 45 minutes.
City were struggling against the organisation and energy Forest produced. The passing and movement had dipped below what is expected as they looked to find a second goal that would give the hosts little way back but Forest were dangerous and causing problems on the counterattack, without being able to find the composure required.
Guardiola called for Haaland from the bench to give Forest’s three centre-backs something else to think about. Maybe he sensed that the home team were tiring, affording De Bruyne more space in which to work. He was working between the lines and used Haaland as a decoy before taking aim from 25 yards but Sels was equal to the shot.
De Bruyne and Haaland – in front of his father, former Forest player Alf-Inge – combined soon after as the Belgian slipped the ball to the striker outside the box. He took a couple of touches to defeat Murillo, who had an excellent game, before firing across Sels into the corner. City might not have been at their best but with De Bruyne and Haaland on the pitch they had the quality to outwit an opponent in the blink of an eye.
Callum Hudson-Odoi forced Ortega into a spectacular save but it seemed unlikely that Forest would claw back the deficit. Red shirts dropped to their knees at the end to show the level of exertion required to even come close to stopping City.
- Download the Guardian app from the iOS App Store on iPhone or the Google Play store on Android by searching for 'The Guardian'.
- If you already have the Guardian app, make sure you’re on the most recent version.
- In the Guardian app, tap the Menu button at the bottom right, then go to Settings (the gear icon), then Notifications.
- Turn on sport notifications.
The away end broke into chants of “Champions again” as the confidence grows that City will win a fourth in a row. They showed in Nottingham they have the know-how to get through tough games at the business end of the season to maintain their favourites moniker.
The referee, Simon Hooper, had a great game and VAR was not required for anything of note … in case you were wondering.
