Nottingham Forest was given a baptism of fire back in the Premier League as an impressive Newcastle side beat the Reds 2-0. Second half goals from Fabian Schar and Callum Wilson were enough for the home side to secure the win.
No less than eight players made their professional debut for Forest in the fixture. But the home side won the possession battle and had chance after chance through the game, having a total of 23 attempts with 10 on target with Forest failing to register an attempt on target, struggling to bring the forward players into play.
READ MORE: Newcastle v Nottingham Forest LIVE: Team news and updates from Premier League clash
Head coach Steve Cooper named six new players in his starting XI, including Jesse Lingard and Dean Henderson. The Reds started the opening 10 minutes nervy, with Moussa Niakhate perhaps most nervous of all, being caught in possession early on.
Forest eventually settled down, but Newcastle kept coming, dominating possession through the first half. Forest had the odd chance on the counter, with Sam Surridge failing to find Brennan Johnson with a cutback, but Newcastle had the much better of the chances.
A turnaround at the interval saw more of the same, but the Reds defence stood firm. That was until a moment of magic from Fabian Schar in the 58th minute, who hit the ball powerfully into Dean Henderson's near top corner to break the deadlock after Forest had cleared a corner.
Cooper opted for a switch just after the hour mark, bringing Surridge off for Taiwo Awoniyi and a switch to a 3-4-2-1. Forest survived more chances and then came at Newcastle with 20 minutes to go, enjoying their strongest spell of possession and finally coming in to the game.
But Newcastle hit back in the 78th minute to blow the wind out of their sails, with patient play seeing Joelinton beat Williams on the flank who crossed low into Callum Wilson, flicking the ball over Henderson. The game opened up as Forest switched to a back four with under 10 minutes to go, but it wasn't enough as the home side came away with all three points.
Dean Henderson: Nothing he could really do for the Schar goal. Saved well of the chances that did come his way, but a clever finish from Wilson put the game to bed. 7/10.
Joe Worrall: Picked up a yellow card early on, and struggled to cope with Saint-Maximin on occasion. Performed alright in his first game as captain. 6/10.
Moussa Niakhate: Started the game nervy, being caught in possession early in the game. Bit of a baptism of fire for the new defender, especially being beaten by Wilson in the middle for the second. 5/10.
Scott McKenna: Looked the most solid of the three throughout. Helped to limit Newcastle's proficiency in front of goal. 7/10.
Neco Williams: Another one that looked nervous in the opening 10 minutes, but did settle after that. Put in some good crosses, and looks a decent prospect for Forest going forward, but did get caught on the overlap. 6/10.
Lewis O'Brien: Picked up a yellow card in the first half, and some passing was wayward to begin with. It felt as if Forest were overrun a bit in midfield though. 5/10.
Jack Colback: Looked determined against his old club and his work rate was impressive, especially one case in the first half where he lost the ball and won a tackle to win it back. Again, overrun in midfield. 6/10.
Harry Toffolo: A decent start in Forest colours for Toffolo. Got forward well at times. 6/10.
Jesse Lingard: Struggled to get into the game because of Newcastle's domination for large periods. When he did, some passing was a little wayward, and it looks as if he's still settling in to the club. 5/10.
Brennan Johnson: Another one that struggled to get into the game, and was left isolated up front at times. Showed flashes of his unbeatable pace, but Newcastle defence did not allow him to get round them. 5/10.
Sam Surridge: Caused problems in the air for Newcastle, including some solid defensive work, and found space in the first half with that cutback. A bit more quality and he could have nicked a goal, but got into decent areas before coming off. 6/10.
Substitutes - Taiwo Awoniyi (63 mins, for Surridge): Although fresh legs in the second half, had the same problem of not being able to get in the game. 5/10.
Orel Mangala (75 mins, for O'Brien): Looked to cause problems in midfield. 5/10.
Alex Mighten (83 mins, for Niakhate): Won a free-kick in a dangerous position late in the game in his limited time on the pitch. 5/10.
READ NEXT:
Nottingham Forest weakness identified as Steve Cooper names first Premier League starting line-up
Former Nottingham Forest striker warns of ‘us and them’ split in camp after summer churn
'Working on scraps' - Nottingham Forest claim as Newcastle United prediction made
Wolves reveal Morgan Gibbs-White price tag as Nottingham Forest bid confirmed
Click here for all the latest Nottingham Forest news and views from Nottinghamshire Live
