Igor Jesus Fires a Brace as Nottingham Forest Round Off European Group Stage with Victory over Hungarian Opponents
Match Summary
- Forest were previously qualified to the knockout round.
- Bence Otvos deflection gives Nottingham Forest a first-half lead.
- The striker's European strike puts the team in control.
- Forward nets again with a sharp finish in the latter period.
- James McAtee caps a excellent performance with a spot-kick.
Igor Jesus scored twice as Nottingham Forest concluded the group stage of the European competition with a comfortable win against their Hungarian visitors at the home stadium.
Forest had already secured a place in the knockout round play-offs and went into this fixture with a slim possibility of reaching the league's elite, although they required several results to go their way.
Those results failed to materialize but this confident performance will give Forest fans belief that their side can come through the home-and-away tie to advance to the round of sixteen.
Kristoffer Zachariassen struck the upright with a header inside the first 10 minutes for the visitors – coached by former Tottenham striker Robbie Keane – but it was all Forest from then on.
Forest opened the scoring in the 17th minute when a delivery from midfield was deflected in by Bence Otvos and added a second shortly after – Jesus firing an effort in at the far post for his tenth strike of the season.
The forward's 11th arrived early in the second half when he made a perfectly-timed run to escape the defence and then drive an effort beyond the shot-stopper.
That goal killed off Ferencvaros' aspirations of making a comeback and instead the hosts added a fourth when the excellent James McAtee scored from a spot-kick after a infringement by the hapless Bence Otvos inside the box on the winger.
Europe's secondary club competition knockout phase play-off lottery is scheduled on the final Friday of January (12:00 GMT), where Nottingham Forest could be drawn against either Fenerbahce or the Greek club.
"It's more than the result, there was that feel about it. I want these guys to do well as a unit, the whole squad," said manager Sean Dyche.
"This is another step, but it is a good one."
Team Breakdown: Striker Shines as Recent Arrival Watches On
Igor Jesus has been a revelation for Forest in European competition this season with half of his eleven strikes scored in the Europa League.
This double also means he has got three goals in his previous two outings and the threat of a challenge for his place in attack could be providing motivation.
Napoli striker Lorenzo Lucca was recently signed on loan and he was watching this match from the directors' box.
That may well have been on Jesus' mind as he was impressive against the opposition, producing two excellent finishes and overall being a constant threat to the opposition backline with his speed and runs.
The forward was not the only one in catching the eye, with James McAtee turning in his finest display in a Forest jersey since joining from the champions in the previous transfer window, while the Swiss international also impressed.
These encouraging performances will give Forest some renewed optimism as they turn their attention to increasing the gap from the bottom three when they host Crystal Palace on Sunday.
"All you can ask for is a reaction," continued Dyche.
"I've never questioned their work ethic or their loyalty or honesty. It is just go and show your quality.
"James was excellent and Dan was incredibly lively. Igor got another two and these are positive indicators."
Star Performer
#19 The Striker
Match rating: 9.10
Forest Top Players
- #19: Rating 9.10
- #24: Average Rating 8.75
- #22: Average Rating 8.63
- #6: Average Rating 8.0
- #31: Average Rating 7.94
The Visitors Notable Players
- B. Yusuf: Rating 4.14
- Júlio Romão: Rating 4.12
- K. Zachariassen: Average Rating 4.1
Once the chance to submit ratings has ended, the score displayed is the mean from all the submissions.
