Igor Jesus Fires a Brace as The Reds Conclude Europa League Campaign with Win over Ferencvaros
Match Summary
- Forest were previously qualified to the knockout round.
- A Ferencvaros defender deflection gives Nottingham Forest a opening period lead.
- Igor Jesus' European strike puts the team in control.
- Striker adds a third with a sharp finish in the latter period.
- James McAtee caps a great display with a spot-kick.
Igor Jesus scored twice as Nottingham Forest rounded off the group stage of the Europa League with a convincing win against their Hungarian visitors at the City Ground.
Forest had previously guaranteed a berth in the next qualifying round and entered this fixture with a slim possibility of making the league's elite, even though they needed several results to fall in their favor.
Those results failed to materialize but this confident performance will give the supporters confidence that their team can navigate the home-and-away tie to advance to the round of sixteen.
Kristoffer Zachariassen struck the post with a header inside the first 10 minutes for the visitors – coached by ex-Premier League forward Robbie Keane – but it was all Forest from that point forward.
Forest opened the scoring in the early stages when Ryan Yates' cross was deflected in by the defender and added a second four minutes later – Jesus squeezing a shot in at the far post for his 10th goal of the campaign.
The forward's eleventh goal came early in the second half when he made a perfectly-timed run to escape the defence and then place a shot beyond the goalkeeper.
That goal ended Ferencvaros' aspirations of making a comeback and instead Forest added a fourth when the excellent James McAtee converted a penalty after a foul by the hapless Bence Otvos inside the penalty area on Dan Ndoye.
The Europa League qualifying round draw takes place on the final Friday of January (midday UK time), where Nottingham Forest could be drawn against either the Turkish side or Panathinaikos.
"It is not just the result, there was that feel about it. I want these players to do well as a unit, the entire team," said manager Sean Dyche.
"That was another stride forward, but it is a good one."
Team Breakdown: Striker Shines as Recent Arrival Observes from Stands
Igor Jesus has been a standout performer for Nottingham Forest in Europe this season with six of his 11 goals scored in the Europa League.
This double also means he has scored a trio of strikes in his previous two outings and the threat of competition for his position in the forward line could be spurring him on.
Italian forward Lorenzo Lucca was last week brought in temporarily and he was watching this game from the directors' box.
This development may well have been on the striker's mind as he was outstanding against Ferencvaros, delivering two excellent finishes and generally being a constant threat to the visitors' defence with his pace and movement.
Jesus was not the only one in impressing, with McAtee producing his best performance in a Forest jersey since joining from the champions in the previous transfer window, while Dan Ndoye also performed well.
These encouraging performances will give the club some fresh hope as they switch focus to pulling further away from the bottom three when they host Crystal Palace on the weekend.
"All you can ask for is a response," continued Dyche.
"I have always trusted their commitment or their loyalty or honesty. It is just go and show your quality.
"James was excellent and Dan Ndoye was incredibly lively. Jesus got another two and these are good signs."
Player of the Match
#19 Igor Jesus
Average rating: 9.10
Nottingham Forest Key Performers
- Igor Jesus: Average Rating 9.10
- #24: Rating 8.8
- R. Yates: Rating 8.63
- I. Sangaré: Average Rating 8.0
- #31: Average Rating 7.9
Ferencváros Notable Players
- #11: Average Rating 4.14
- Júlio Romão: Average Rating 4.12
- #16: Average Rating 4.09
Once the chance to rate players has closed, the score shown is the mean from all the submissions.
