Nottingham Forest got back to winning ways as Manchester City were put to the sword at a packed-out City Ground.
The game had looked to be heading towards a draw which would have seen a second successive goalless clash in the Premier League on Trentside after a share of the spoils against Arsenal.
Forest have match-winners aplenty these days, however. With just seven minutes remaining, two of those players took over. A superb ball cross-field from Morgan Gibbs-White sent Callum Hudson-Odoi bearing down on goal and he finished brilliantly at the near post.
It sparked wonderful City Ground scenes and Nuno Espirito Santo will have been delighted with the efforts of his players as City were restricted to half chances, with Forest going four clear of the reigning champions.
Photo by Marc Atkins/Getty Images
Photo by Marc Atkins/Getty Images
Nuno Espirito Santo now close to record held by Jurgen Klopp
The Forest head coach continues to see his stock rise. This was an important win for all concerned and although he’ll play it down, Espirito Santo will have enjoyed this one.
Forest richly deserved their win after taking a chance in a game that can be consigned to the record books for largely being pretty drab, with one moment of magic settling the tie.
After the win over Manchester City yesterday, Espirito Santo is now closing in on a record held by Jurgen Klopp when it comes to playing against Manchester City.
Espirito Santo has now won four Premier League games against Pep Guardiola, with Klopp the only manager to have claimed more than the former Liverpool manager.
MORE FOREST STORIES
Clearly, Esprito Santo likes coming up against the bigger teams and perhaps he’s proving himself as a man for the big occasion having won some seriously sizeable games this season.
Espirito Santo can do great things at Forest
It might not have been too popular when he replaced Steve Cooper at Forest, but Espirito Santo was well worthy of his flowers this season.
The Portuguese head coach is doing wonderful things at Forest and it’s important to recognise that he’s doing a wonderful job.
Espirito Santo is keen to focus on his players and he won’t be thinking of anything other than playing Ipswich away from home next weekend.
Forest now has a golden chance to cement its place in the top four of the Premier League, and hopefully, this win over Manchester City can kickstart a superb end to the campaign.