Nottingham Forest’s five-game unbeaten run in all competitions was ended as Brighton won 2-0 at the City Ground.
Since Sean Dyche’s arrival at the end of October, Forest had lost just once and had won each of their previous three matches by three goals prior to Sunday. Brighton dominated the opening 20 minutes, attempting nine shots in that period — their most ever inside the opening 20 minutes of a Premier League match — but none were on target until they broke the deadlock on the stroke of half-time. Maxim De Cuyper was found unmarked in the box by Georginio Rutter and swept home from close range.
Forest spent much of the second half chasing an equaliser, outshooting Brighton 11 to four after the break, but were undone by a defensive error. Morato attempted a backwards pass under pressure inside his own box; Brajan Gruda intercepted and tried to round Matz Sels, who nearly made the save but the rebound fell to 19-year-old Stefanos Tzimas to poke home and double Brighton’s lead.
Sels had earlier made a vital double save to deny Diego Gomez and Ferdi Kadioglu, and Bart Verbruggen also denied Igor Jesus at the other end. Despite Sels sparking attacks from the back, Forest could not find the cutting edge that had helped them in recent matches.
The victory moves Brighton up to fifth, and helps exorcise memories of last season’s 7-0 defeat at the City Ground. Forest remain 16th, one point above the relegation zone.
Team news
– Morgan Gibbs-White started after missing the Malmo win with a back problem. Murillo missed out through injury and was replaced by Morato.
– Brighton made two changes: Lewis Dunk returned to the starting XI after illness and Maxim De Cuyper started on the left, with Olivier Boscagli and Carlos Baleba on the bench.
Analysis: De Cuyper shines; Forest miss Murillo
Sky Sports’ Declan Olley highlighted how Brighton bounced back from last season’s heavy loss at Nottingham with a confident performance and a tactical tweak that showcased De Cuyper. Deployed in a more advanced left role, the summer signing helped Brighton produce a blistering opening and deservedly opened the scoring. De Cuyper created the most chances (4) and attempted the most crosses (4) for Brighton and was awarded man of the match.
Forest’s form and personnel have changed since that 7-0 defeat, but Murillo’s absence was notable. Morato’s mistake led to Brighton’s second, and Dyche will be hoping Murillo’s injury clears up ahead of a crucial relegation six-pointer at winless Wolves on Wednesday.
Manager comments
Sean Dyche: “It’s a strange one with the performance after the first 20 minutes because that [start] was really poor. It felt like we were waiting for everyone else to do something but they [Brighton] certainly weren’t waiting. Then we took a grip of the game and played very well for the second half of the first half. We gave away a soft goal and we should manage the game at that point. In the second half, I thought we were dominant. It’s a mistake of a goal at the end, but we got in so many good areas. There are a lot of good signs here but we’ve got to turn those signs into wins. Today is the one that got away from us, but not through lack of effort, just through lack of tactical discipline in the early part.”
Lewis Dunk: “It was probably the best football we’ve played all season for the first 20 minutes. Then they changed their press and we couldn’t quite get to grips with it. They went man-to-man and we couldn’t understand how to get out of it enough. But in the first half, we were the better side but in the second, we had to dig deep. Sometimes you have to win a bit ugly and that’s what we did today. We had a lot to resolve from last year and we did that so it’s a nice feeling.”
Fabian Hurzeler: “Very happy for the team, for the staff, they worked hard this week and during the game. We started really well. We created chances, we defended really well, then we deserved the lead. In the second half, we struggled a little bit. Nottingham Forest bought on some real quality and we suffered a little bit, but we stuck together, we defended and attacked together. In the end, we deserved to win.”
Key stats and facts
– Brighton attempted nine shots in the opening 20 minutes — their most ever in that period of a Premier League match.
– De Cuyper created 4 chances and attempted 4 crosses, winning Man of the Match.
– Brighton move up to fifth in the Premier League; Forest sit 16th.
Player ratings (Sky Sports)
Nottingham Forest: Sels 7; Savona 6, Milenkovic 6, Morato 4, Williams 6; Sangare 7, Anderson 7, Ndoye 6, Gibbs-White 7, Dominguez 6, Jesus 5. Subs: Hudson-Odoi 7, Hutchinson 7, Yates 6, Kalimuendo 6, McAtee (n/a).
Brighton: Verbruggen 7; De Cuyper 8, Van Hecke 7, Dunk 7, Kadioglu 7, Wieffer 6, Ayari 6, Minteh 6, Rutter 6, Gomez 6, Welbeck 5. Subs: Hinshelwood 6, Tzimas 7, Baleba (n/a), Veltman (n/a), Gruda (n/a).
Player of the Match: Maxim De Cuyper.
What’s next?
– Nottingham Forest fixtures
– Brighton fixtures
– Premier League fixtures