Nottingham Forest fell to a second successive Premier League defeat yesterday, after narrowly losing 2-0 to Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City at the City Ground.
Goals from Josko Gvardiol and Erling Haaland secured a vital win for City in their bid to secure a sixth Premier League title in the last seven seasons, with the result leaving the Reds in a precarious position.
Nuno Espírito Santo’s side currently sit a point and a place above the drop zone, with just three games remaining this campaign, facing the prospect of a final-day shootout with Burnley and Luton Town to remain in the top flight.
However, the Reds could’ve derailed City’s title ambitions and further strengthened their survival hopes had they finished multiple clear opportunities.
Forest managed 14 shots to City’s 11, having three big chances during the meeting but squandering all of them. One player in particular had a rare off day for the Reds, unable to direct any of his chances on target.
Chris Wood’s stats against Manchester City
Reds top scorer Chris Wood has scored 12 goals in the Premier League this season, but failed to add to his tally against the champions yesterday despite multiple clear opportunities.
The New Zealand international featured for the entirety of the contest, achieving an xG of 0.94 – the highest of any player on the pitch, but failing to convert any chances.
He also missed two big chances and given his form in front of goal so far this season, you would expect him to bury both, but unfortunately for Forest, he failed to capitalise on the golden opportunities.
Wood also lost possession 11 times during the loss, and failed to complete 100% of the dribbles he attempted – in what was an afternoon to forget for the 32-year-old.
He’s been brilliant for Nuno in the club’s relegation battle, with yesterday his first real off day in a long while. However, despite his poor efforts, one of his teammates also endured a difficult afternoon at the City Ground.
Moussa Niakhate’s stats against Manchester City
Senegalese defender Moussa Niakhate has started the last two Premier League outings for the club, but featured as part of a back five against City instead of a four as utilised against Everton.
The 28-year-old failed to win any tackles and also failed to win any duel that he contested – with Niakhate the only player within the Reds backline unable to win at least one duel.
Fellow centre-back Andrew Omobamidele was brought on in the 74th minute for Murillo, with the Irishman also winning more duels than Niakhate, despite featuring for over an hour less.
| Niakhate’s stats against Man City | |
|---|---|
| Statistics | Tally |
| Minutes played | 90 |
| Tackles | 0 |
| Duels won | 0 |
| Possession lost | 7x |
| Passes | 29 |
| Stats via Sofascore | |
Nuno’s side enjoyed a decent chunk of possession before Gvardiol’s opener, but the former Mainz defender was wasteful in possession, giving the ball away seven times and only managing to complete 29 passes.
He’s failed to replicate his form from earlier in the campaign in recent matches, with Nuno needing to stick with a back five for the trip to Sheffield United, but replacing Niakhate for Omobamidele if the Reds are to claim three vital points next weekend.
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