Igor Jesus Scores Twice as The Reds Conclude Europa League Group Stage with Win over Ferencvaros
At a Glance
- Forest were previously qualified to the play-offs.
- Bence Otvos own goal gives hosts a first-half lead.
- The striker's fifth goal in Europe puts Forest in control.
- Forward nets again with a clinical effort in the second half.
- James McAtee caps a great display with a penalty.
Igor Jesus found the net on two occasions as Nottingham Forest rounded off the league phase of the Europa League with a convincing win against their Hungarian visitors at the home stadium.
The hosts had already secured a berth in the next qualifying round and went into this fixture with a small chance of making the top eight, even though they required other matches to fall in their favor.
Those results failed to materialize but this confident performance will give Forest fans confidence that their side can navigate the home-and-away tie to reach the round of sixteen.
Kristoffer Zachariassen did hit the post with a headed effort inside the first 10 minutes for the away team – who are managed by former Tottenham striker Robbie Keane – but it was all Forest from that point forward.
Forest opened the scoring in the early stages when a delivery from midfield was deflected in by Bence Otvos and doubled the lead shortly after – Jesus firing an effort in at the back post for his tenth strike of the campaign.
The forward's eleventh goal arrived soon after the restart when he made a perfectly-timed run to escape the backline and then place a shot beyond the shot-stopper.
The third strike killed off the visitors' aspirations of making a comeback and instead the hosts scored again when the excellent McAtee converted a penalty after a infringement by the unfortunate Bence Otvos inside the penalty area on the winger.
The Europa League knockout phase play-off draw is scheduled on Friday, 30 January (12:00 GMT), where Nottingham Forest might face either the Turkish side or the Greek club.
"It's more than the scoreline, there was that atmosphere about it. I want these players to do well as a unit, the whole squad," said Forest boss Sean Dyche.
"This is another stride forward, but it is a positive one."
Forest Analysis: Striker Shines as Recent Arrival Observes from Stands
Igor Jesus has been a revelation for Forest in European competition this season with six of his eleven strikes coming in the tournament.
His brace also means he has got three goals in his last two games and the threat of a challenge for his position in attack could be providing motivation.
Napoli striker Lorenzo Lucca was last week brought in temporarily and he was watching this match from the directors' box.
That may well have been on the striker's thoughts as he was outstanding against the opposition, producing two superb finishes and generally being a menace to the visitors' defence with his speed and movement.
The forward was not the only one in catching the eye, with McAtee turning in his best performance in a Forest jersey since joining from Manchester City in the previous transfer window, while the Swiss international also performed well.
These encouraging performances will give the club some fresh hope as they turn their attention to pulling further away from the bottom three when they welcome Crystal Palace on Sunday.
"The minimum requirement is a response," continued the manager.
"I have always trusted their work ethic or their loyalty or integrity. It is just go and show your quality.
"James was excellent and Dan was super sharp. Jesus got another two and these are positive indicators."
Player of the Match
#19 The Striker
Match rating: 9.1
Nottingham Forest Key Performers
- Igor Jesus: Rating 9.1
- #24: Rating 8.8
- R. Yates: Average Rating 8.6
- #6: Average Rating 8.01
- #31: Rating 7.94
Ferencváros Notable Players
- #11: Rating 4.14
- #66: Average Rating 4.1
- K. Zachariassen: Average Rating 4.09
Once the chance to rate players has closed, the score shown represents the mean from all the votes.
