Nottingham Forest are already facing an uphill battle for the second leg of their Carabao Cup semi-final, having been beaten 3-0 by Manchester United in the first leg at the City Ground.
It threatened to be a long night as the hosts got off to the worst possible start. With just six minutes gone, Marcus Rashford breezed past Joe Worrall and Remo Freuler before thumping the ball beyond Wayne Hennessey to open the scoring with a terrific solo goal.
The Reds were very much second best in the opening 20 minutes. But a disallowed Sam Surridge effort sparked them into life.
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The front man thought he had levelled after being played in by Morgan Gibbs-White, only for VAR to rule he had been offside. Still, Forest had their tails up and began to create chances, with Gustavo Scarpa and Brennan Johnson both calling David De Gea into action, while the latter spurned another good opportunity by firing off target.
Just as the Reds looked like getting back into the game, they were dealt a suckerpunch. Wout Weghorst made it 2-0 by pouncing on the rebound after Hennessey had palmed away an Antony effort.
Christian Eriksen rattled the crossbar after the break, while Gibbs-White went close for Forest. But Bruno Fernandes added a third for United in the closing minutes. Here’s how Reds reporter Sarah Clapson rated the Forest players at the City Ground.
Wayne Hennessey: Could probably have done better with the first two goals, for certain, although wasn’t helped by the defending in front of him. Makes for a tough second leg. Rating: 5.5/10
Serge Aurier: Had gone AWOL when Rashford powered down that flank for the opener. Some good moments going forward, but he’s set such high standards this season. Rating: 5.5/10
Joe Worrall: Not the start he would have wanted, being beaten within the first few minutes. A tough night at times, although he tried not to let it affect him. Rating: 5.5/10
Scott McKenna: Some difficult moments as United’s quality in attack shone through at times. Did make an excellent tackle on Weghorst early in the second half, though. Rating: 5.5/10
Renan Lodi: Grew into the game and pushed forward well after the hosts were on the back foot early on. Some nice link-up play with his fellow Brazilians. Rating: 6.5/10
Danilo: Quite the game to make his full debut in - and a really encouraging one it was, too. Showed plenty of promise and worked hard for the team. Didn’t look out of place at all. Rating: 7/10
Remo Freuler: Rashford brushed the midfielder and Worrall aside as if they weren’t even there. Picked himself up after that, but it wasn’t easy. Rating: 6/10
Gustavo Scarpa: Once Forest got going, the Brazilian was a real livewire. Forced a really good save in the first half and had a fair few positive moments. Rating: 7/10
Morgan Gibbs-White: Hopefully taken off as a precaution, after going down. Forest can ill-afford to be without him, given the form he’s in. Was brilliant again, causing United plenty of problems. Rating: 7.5/10
Brennan Johnson: Pace caused the visitors problems, and he had a couple of good chances as a result. Just couldn’t find the right finish on this occasion. Rating: 7/10
Sam Surridge: A case of what might have been. Looked a very tight offside call to deny him what would have been a terrific goal - how differently the night could have panned out had that stood. Rating: 6/10
Subs
Jack Colback (for Danilo, 58mins): Tried to give Forest a platform to build on in the second half. Rating: 6/10
Jesse Lingard (for Scarpa, 64mins): Difficult to make an impact, with the hosts chasing the game, but did have one sight of goal. Rating: 6/10
Emmanuel Dennis (for Surridge, 64mins): Forest needed him to use the ball better when he got hold of it. Struggled to make an impact. Rating: 5.5/10
Lewis O’Brien (for Gibbs-White, 72mins): A big ask for him to try to help change the game. Rating: 6/10
Neco Williams (for Lodi, 72mins): Made some good runs when he came on, trying to force an opening. Rating: 7/10
Subs not used: Smith, Cook, Mangala, Boly
Who was your Forest man of the match? Have your say in the comments below
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